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Roast Chicken & Pesto

This is a fantastic way to eat a roast chicken – whether it's hot or cold.

By jamieoliver · From Open Recipes · 8 ingredients
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Roast Chicken & Pesto

Why it works: Thyme and basil match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,768 recipes. Both carry terpineol, which smells pine, woody. The science ↓

Roast Chicken & Pesto

Serves 6

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

613Calories
46 gProtein
44 gFat
12 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Pine Nut1 oz (28g)191
Chicken100g cooked165
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Clove1 tsp ground (2g)7
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Thyme1 tsp dried (1.4g)4
Basil5 leaves fresh (2.5g)1

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By jamieoliver. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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.

  1. Thyme + basiltop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,768 recipes

    Shared aroma: terpineol (pine, woody).

  2. Basil + pinetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together332 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (sweet, anise).

  3. Lemon + thymetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,973 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Lemon + basiltop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,823 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  5. Clove + thymetop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together4,108 recipes

    Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, garlic, lemon, thyme, olive, basil, pine):

  1. Rosemaryfits better
  2. Oreganofits better
  3. Marjoramfits better
  4. Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, garlic, lemon, thyme, olive, basil, pine. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.