Why it works: Asparagus and peas match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 808 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Epigram of Lamb
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare lamb neck cutlets and set aside.
Cook the lamb breast in stock until tender, then remove bones.
Chop the meat and form into flat croquettes.
Coat croquettes in egg and breadcrumbs, then fry until golden.
Serve one cutlet and one croquette per person, garnished with asparagus points and accompanied by peas.
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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Asparagus + peastop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together808 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Lamb + asparagustop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together207 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
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Lamb + peastop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together650 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
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Asparagus + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,338 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Egg + peastop 22% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,065 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-octenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lamb, asparagus, egg):
- Beansfits about as well
- Sesamefits about as well
- Peasthe original
- Almondfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against lamb, asparagus, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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