Why it works: Pepper and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Fried Chickens
Ingredients
Directions
Heat the lard or butter in a frying pan.
Add the chicken quarters and fry until brown on one side.
Turn the chicken, sprinkle with chopped parsley, and fry until brown.
If desired, add a few slices of ham to the pan.
Before serving, drain off the excess lard.
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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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Chicken + hamtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,497 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Butter + parsleytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together28,563 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
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Chicken + buttertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together13,902 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-furfurylthiol (coffee, roasted).
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Butter + hamtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,475 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Chicken
- Provides the main protein, which browns and firms as it fries.
- Lard or butter
- Conducts heat for frying and browns the chicken skin through direct contact.
The step that matters
Browning the first side. Chicken should be left undisturbed until the first side releases easily and turns golden. Moving it early tears the skin and prevents an even crust from forming.
Swap the parsley
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, butter, pepper, ham):
- Thymefits about as well
- Parsleythe original
- Garlicfits about as well
- Celeryfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, butter, pepper, ham. 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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