Why it works: Carrot and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,053 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
Ducks with Orange Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the duck carefully without damaging the skin.
Blanch the feet, trim the small points, and truss them.
Fill the duck with a mixture of butter, lemon juice, and salt.
Truss the duck into a good shape.
Cover a stewpan with lard and place the duck inside.
Top with lemon slices, lard, carrot, onion, parsley, and young onions.
Add consomme and white wine, then cover with paper.
Boil for 45 minutes, then drain and unlace the duck.
Serve with orange sauce.
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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Carrot + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together8,053 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Lemon + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Carrot + clovetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,873 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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Carrot + oniontop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together21,601 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Clove + parsleytop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,768 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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, lemon, carrot, clove, parsley, white wine):
- Shallotfits better
- Leekfits better
- Parsnipfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, lemon, carrot, clove, parsley, white wine. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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