Name: From My Mother’s Kitchen: Updated Tuna Casserole
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons butter; 1 medium yellow onion, diced; 8oz cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced; 4 scallions, white and green parts separated, thinly sliced; 1 teaspoon soy sauce; 1/4 cup white wine; 3 tablespoons flour; 2 cups chicken stock; 1 cup whole milk; 5oz tuna packed in olive oil*; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 8oz egg noodles; 1 cup bread crumbs; 1 tablespoon parsley (optional)

Why it works: Mushroom and chicken are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,172 recipes. Both carry 1-butyl acetate, which smells fruity, banana. The science ↓

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.

Mushroom + chickentop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together4,172 recipes

Shared aroma: 1-butyl acetate (fruity, banana).
Mushroom + white winetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,765 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity).
Butter + milktop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together81,283 recipes

Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Butter + mushroomtop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together12,525 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
Onion + chickentop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,814 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).

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

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, mushroom, sauce, white wine, flour, chicken, milk):

Shallotfits better
Potatofits about as well
Capsicumfits about as well
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, mushroom, sauce, white wine, flour, chicken, milk. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Salmon	100g cooked	208
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Wine	2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)	25
Mushroom	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12
Soy Sauce	1 tbsp (15ml)	9
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

From My Mother’s Kitchen: Updated Tuna Casserole