Why it works: Parsley and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Mushroom Patties
Ingredients
Directions
Make the filling
Melt the butter in a pan and cook the chopped shallot until soft.
Add the chopped mushrooms, cover, and simmer gently for 20 minutes.
Stir in the white sauce, parsley, lemon juice, and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
If desired, add cream to the mixture.
Serve
Fill the patty cases with the mushroom mixture and serve very hot.
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 + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Shallot + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together3,737 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Parsley + nutmegtop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,062 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Mushrooms
- Provide the main bulk and earthy flavour, releasing moisture as they simmer.
- Butter
- Adds richness and carries flavour while softening the shallot.
- White sauce
- Binds the mushroom mixture so it holds together in the cases.
- Cream
- Adds smoothness and richness to the filling when used.
The step that matters
Simmer the mushrooms gently. Mushrooms release a lot of water. Covered gentle simmering lets that moisture soften and mingle with the flavours, while uncovered or fierce heat can leave the filling watery or dry and unevenly cooked.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (mushroom, shallot, sauce, butter, parsley, lemon, pepper):
- Thymefits better
- Tarragonfits better
- Capersfits better
- Nutmegthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against mushroom, shallot, sauce, butter, parsley, lemon, pepper. 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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