Why it works: Cucumber and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,405 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Modern Cookery
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Chop the onions and cucumbers.
Dice the tomatoes or apples.
Make the soup
In a pot, combine the onions, cucumbers, and tomatoes or apples.
Add the curry powder, salt, and water or stock.
Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until tender.
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.
-
Cucumber + tomatotop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,405 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Onion + cucumbertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,050 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Onion + tomatotop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,633 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Onions
- Provide the sweet, aromatic base that softens into the soup.
- Cucumbers
- Add moisture and a mild, fresh body as they soften during simmering.
- Tomatoes or apples
- Contribute acidity or fruity sweetness and help give the soup body.
- Mild curry powder
- Supplies the spiced aroma and flavor that defines the soup.
The step that matters
Simmer until tender. Simmering for the stated 30 to 40 minutes lets the vegetables soften fully and release their flavors into the liquid. Stopping early leaves firm pieces and a thin, underdeveloped taste.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cucumber, tomato):
- Lettucefits better
- Eggplantfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cucumber, tomato. 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.
You might also like
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Cream of Tomato Soup107 recipes
Tomato Bisque61 recipes
Cream Tomato Soup28 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.