Why it works: Tomato and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and 17,923 recipes mention both. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Cream of Tomato Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the tomatoes
Combine the strained tomatoes, sliced onion, bay leaf, and mace in a saucepan.
Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
Make the milk base
Heat the milk in a double boiler, stirring until thick and smooth.
Combine and serve
Strain the tomato mixture into a soup tureen.
Add the baking soda and season with salt and pepper.
Stir and then gradually add the thickened milk.
Mix gently and serve.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Tomato + oniontop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together20,633 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Tomato + milktop 15% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together2,226 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
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Mace + peppertop 16% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together12,257 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
Mace and pepper share little aroma chemistry, yet 12,257 recipes mention both: they likely 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
- Strained tomatoes
- Provide the main tomato flavor and acidity that defines the soup.
- Milk
- Gives the soup its creamy body, richness, and smooth texture.
- Baking soda
- Neutralizes tomato acidity, helping the milk stay smooth instead of curdling.
The step that matters
Gradually add the thickened milk. Tomatoes are acidic, and acid can make hot milk curdle when it meets it. Adding the milk slowly and stirring keeps the soup smooth. The baking soda, added first, raises the pH of the tomato mixture and reduces this risk.
Flavor stand-ins for the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, onion, milk, pepper):
- Garlicbetter flavor fit
- Thymebetter flavor fit
- Celerybetter flavor fit
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, onion, milk, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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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