Why it works: Parsley and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Haricot Beans
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Soak the beans overnight in cold water, then strain them and let them stand for a day or two if possible.
Cook
Put the beans into a saucepan with boiling water and dripping, and add ¼ teaspoon salt.
Simmer gently for two hours or until quite soft.
Drain the beans in a colander, then return them to the saucepan with butter, parsley, salt, and pepper.
Stir over the fire for five minutes and serve in a hot vegetable dish.
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.
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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Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Butter + parsleytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together28,563 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
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Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Haricot beans (in the method)
- Form the main body of the dish and soften into a tender texture when simmered.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a smooth, glossy coating to the cooked beans.
- Parsley
- Adds fresh, green aroma and a mild herbal flavour.
The step that matters
Simmer gently for two hours or until quite soft. Beans need a long, gentle simmer to soften fully; a hard boil can break up the skins and leave the centres firm. Salt added early can slow softening, so check doneness by tasting.
“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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