Cabbage Salad

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. Cabbage + peppertop 5% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together4,081 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

2. Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together41,516 recipes

   Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

3. Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together124,287 recipes

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

4. Walnut + flourtop 12% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together5,873 recipes

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

5. Walnut + peppertop 13% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together3,039 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

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

What each ingredient does

White cabbage

Forms the crisp, bulky body of the salad.

Butter

Enriches the dressing and gives it a smooth, rich texture.

Flour

Thickens the melted butter so the dressing holds together.

Vinegar

Adds sharp acidity that balances the richness of the dressing.

Egg

Thickens the dressing as it heats and gives it body.

Cream

Adds moisture and softness, mellowing the dressing.

The step that matters

Swap the cabbage

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, walnut, flour, vinegar, egg, cream, pepper):

1. Shallotfits better
2. Capsicumfits better
3. Spinachfits better
4. Cabbagethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, walnut, flour, vinegar, egg, cream, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.