Why it works: Peas and mint are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,137 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-ol, which smells mushroom, earthy. The science ↓
Pea Soup, Green, II
Ingredients
Directions
Put the peas into a saucepan with the water.
Add the sugar, baking soda, and mint tied in a small piece of muslin.
Bring to a boil, then add the stock and season with pepper and salt.
Once boiling again, rub the mixture through a sieve.
Return to the saucepan and reheat thoroughly before serving.
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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Peas + minttop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,137 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Mint + peppertop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,372 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Peas + peppertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,331 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Peas + meattop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together573 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
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Meat + peppertop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,777 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Peas
- Form the body and main flavour of the soup once puréed.
- Meat stock
- Adds savoury depth and liquid to the soup.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the savoury stock and green flavour.
- Baking soda
- Helps the peas soften and keeps their green colour bright.
The step that matters
Rubbing the mixture through a sieve. Pushing the cooked peas through a sieve breaks down their cell walls and produces a smooth texture. Skipping or rushing this leaves the soup grainy, with skins left behind.
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (meat, sugar, mint, pepper):
- Peasthe original
- Walnutfits about as well
- Beansfits less well
- Chickpeafits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against meat, sugar, mint, 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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