Why it works: Beef and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,759 recipes. Both carry 1-hexanal, which smells fruit. The science ↓
Beef Croquettes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
In a bowl, combine the chopped cold beef and cold ham if using.
Add the beaten eggs and a little milk, mixing until well combined.
Shape and fry
Shape the mixture into rolls.
Heat oil in a pan and fry the rolls until golden brown.
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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Beef + milktop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,759 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-hexanal (fruit).
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Beef + hamtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,729 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).
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Ham + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,526 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Egg + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Ham + milktop 23% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,089 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cold beef
- Forms the main body of the croquettes and gives them their meaty flavour.
- Eggs
- Bind the meat mixture together so the rolls hold their shape.
- Milk
- Adds moisture so the mixture stays soft and easier to shape.
The step that matters
Shape the mixture into rolls. If the mixture is too wet or too warm, the rolls can slump or break apart in the oil. Keeping the meat cold and the mixture well bound helps the rolls hold their shape while they fry.
“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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