Why it works: Tomato and corn match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and 2,099 recipes mention both. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Tomato Soup
Ingredients
Directions
In a pot, combine the stewed tomatoes and water.
Bring to a boil.
Dissolve the corn starch in a little water, then add it to the soup.
Stir in the sugar, butter, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper.
Boil again and serve hot.
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.
-
Tomato + corntop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together2,099 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Corn + peppertop 11% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together5,324 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Corn + buttertop 14% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together7,345 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Stewed tomatoes
- Provide the main body, acidity and flavor of the soup.
- Corn starch
- Thickens the soup as it heats, giving it a smoother body.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a rounder mouthfeel to the soup.
- Sugar
- Balances the sharp acidity of the tomatoes.
The step that matters
Add the cornstarch slurry to the boiling soup. Cornstarch must be dissolved in cold or room-temperature liquid first, then stirred into hot soup and brought to a boil. Dumping it in dry or lumpy causes clumps, and it only thickens fully once the mixture boils.
“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 tomato soup recipes
You might also like
Corn Fritters203 recipes
Tomato Bisque61 recipes
Cream of Corn Soup50 recipes
Green Corn Soup46 recipesThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.