Why it works: Chicken and rice are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,769 recipes. Both carry (e,e)-2,4-decadienal, which smells fatty, deep fried. The science ↓
Chicken Broth
Ingredients
Directions
Simmer the broth
Place the bones and chicken meat in a saucepan with water.
Bring to a boil and skim off any foam.
Reduce heat and simmer for 3 hours.
Finish
Strain the broth and season with salt.
If desired, add boiled rice or tapioca for extra texture.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Chicken + ricetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,769 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
-
Chicken + meattop 13% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,449 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
-
Meat + ricetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,481 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Chicken bones
- Release gelatin and savory flavor into the water during long simmering, giving the broth body.
- Lean chicken meat
- Releases flavor into the water as it simmers, adding savory depth to the broth.
- Rice or tapioca
- Adds starchy body and a softer texture when stirred into the finished broth.
The step that matters
Keep the simmer gentle after the boil. Once the water boils, reducing the heat to a gentle simmer keeps the broth clear. A hard boil churns fat and proteins into the liquid, making it cloudy.
“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.
More chicken broth recipes
You might also like
The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.

Chicken Soup156 recipes
Creamed Chicken89 recipes
Rice Fritters84 recipes
Chicken Panada75 recipes