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 ↓
Lamb Chops
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Trim the flap from the loin of lamb and cut into chops about ¾ inch thick.
Prepare a bright, clear fire and lay the chops on the grill.
Cook and season
Broil the chops until they are a nice pale brown, turning as needed.
Season with pepper and coarse sea salt, or sprinkle with vinegar, pepper, and salt.
Dip the chops in egg, roll in cracker or bread crumbs, and fry.
Serve
Serve hot, garnished with crisp parsley, or on a bed of mashed potatoes.
Accompany with asparagus, spinach, or peas if desired.
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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Potato + asparagustop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together217 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Parsley + potatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,855 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Parsley + asparagustop 8% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together566 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Lamb + asparagustop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together207 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Loin of lamb
- Forms the main body of the dish and provides the meat that is cooked and served.
- Egg
- Acts as a binder so the cracker or bread crumbs stick to the chops.
- Cracker or bread crumbs
- Forms a crisp, browned coating when the chops are fried.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the flavour of the meat.
The step that matters
Dip and coat the chops evenly before frying. The egg must fully wet the surface so the crumbs adhere; bare or patchy spots can let crumbs fall off and burn or leave the meat unevenly browned in the pan.
Swap the asparagus
The recipe marks asparagus as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lamb, pepper, vinegar, egg, bread, parsley, potato):
- Capsicumfits about as well
- Asparagusthe original
- Spinachfits about as well
- Chivefits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against lamb, pepper, vinegar, egg, bread, parsley, potato. 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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