Why it works: Onion and potato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Clam Chowder
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the clams
Wash clams thoroughly.
Place clams in a pot with ½ pint of water.
Cook until shells open.
Remove clams from shells.
Chop clams finely.
Save the clam water.
Prepare the pork and onions
Gently fry salt pork until browned.
Remove the pork scraps.
Add chopped onions to the pan.
Fry onions until delicate.
Make the chowder
Add 1 quart of hot water to a clean chowder kettle.
Add clams to the kettle.
Add the saved clam water to the kettle.
Add pork scraps to the kettle.
Bring the mixture to a boil.
Add potatoes to the kettle.
Cook until potatoes are tender.
Thicken the chowder with 1 cup of powdered crackers.
Stir in 1 quart of fresh milk.
Add more water if the chowder is too rich.
Season with black pepper.
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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Onion + potatotop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Pork + potatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,668 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
-
Clam + porktop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together305 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
-
Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Potato + milktop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,611 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Clams (quahogs)
- Provide the main flavor and texture of the chowder.
- Salt pork
- Adds fat and savory flavor as it browns and renders into the base.
- Potatoes
- Add body and starch that soften during cooking and give the chowder substance.
- Powdered crackers
- Thicken the chowder as their starch absorbs liquid and swells.
- Fresh milk
- Adds creaminess and richness to the finished chowder.
The step that matters
Thicken the chowder with crackers. Powdered crackers are starch that swells when heated in liquid. Added in too large an amount, or not stirred in well, they can clump or make the chowder pasty. Adding them while the liquid is hot and stirring well gives an even, smooth body.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (clam, pork, potato, milk, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Tomatofits about as well
- Onionthe original
- Asparagusfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against clam, pork, potato, milk, 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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