Why it works: Asparagus and spinach match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 274 recipes. Both carry 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol, which smells clove, smoky. The science ↓
Asparagus Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Cut off the points of the asparagus and set aside.
Trim the stalks and cut them into small pieces.
Wash and pick the spinach.
Make the soup
In a stewpan, bring the stock or water to a boil.
Add the asparagus and spinach, and cook until tender, about 40 minutes.
Rub through a fine sieve.
In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil, add a little salt, and cook the asparagus points for 10 to 15 minutes.
Melt the butter in the stewpan, sprinkle in the flour, and add the milk.
Stir until it boils.
Add the stock and purée of asparagus and spinach, season with salt and pepper, and simmer gently for 10 minutes.
Serve
Place the asparagus points into a tureen, add the cream and adjust seasoning, then 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 their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Asparagus + spinachtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together274 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).
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Spinach + peppertop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,400 recipes
Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Asparagus + peppertop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,968 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Asparagus
- Provides the main flavour and body of the soup once puréed, with the tips kept whole for garnish.
- Spinach
- Adds green colour and a mild earthy flavour to the purée.
- Butter
- Enriches the flavour and forms the base of the roux with the flour.
- Flour
- Thickens the milk into a smooth, lightly bodied base through a cooked roux.
- Milk
- Adds creaminess and softness, mellowing the vegetable flavour.
- Cream
- Stirred in at the end to add richness and a smooth, silky mouthfeel.
The step that matters
Stir until it boils. The butter and flour must cook into a roux and the milk must be stirred constantly as it thickens; otherwise lumps form and the soup tastes floury.
Swap the asparagus
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, spinach, butter, flour, cream, pepper):
- Potatofits about as well
- Leekfits about as well
- Chivefits about as well
- Asparagusthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, spinach, butter, flour, cream, 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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