Why it works: Marjoram and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,609 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Pease Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Rinse the split peas and combine them with 3 quarts of cold soft water in a large pot.
Add the bacon, roast beef bones, or anchovies.
Wash and chop the celery and onions, then add them to the pot along with the herbs.
Simmer
Simmer gently over low heat for about 3 hours, stirring every 15 minutes to prevent sticking.
Optionally, fry a head of chopped celery and half an onion in butter until lightly browned, then add to the soup.
Strain and finish
Once the peas are tender, strain the soup through a coarse sieve, then through a fine sieve or tamis.
Return the strained soup to the pot, add black pepper, and bring to a boil for 10 minutes, skimming off any fat that rises.
Serve
Serve hot with toasted bread.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Marjoram + peppertop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,609 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Celery + marjoramtop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together615 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Celery + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together16,012 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Beef + oniontop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,092 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Butter + breadtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,232 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Split peas
- Break down during long simmering to thicken the soup and give it body.
- Bacon
- Adds fat and smoky, savory flavor to the broth.
- Celery
- Contributes aromatic, vegetal flavor to the base of the soup.
- Onions
- Add sweetness and savory depth as they soften during simmering.
The step that matters
Stirring during the long simmer. Split peas are starchy and settle on the bottom of the pot, where they scorch and stick easily over low heat. Regular stirring keeps them suspended and cooking evenly.
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, celery, onion, marjoram, pepper, butter, bread):
- Beansfits better
- Chestnutfits about as well
- Lentilsfits about as well
- Peasthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beef, celery, onion, marjoram, pepper, butter, bread. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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