Why it works: Pepper and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 19% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 50,459 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Roast Fowls
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderately hot oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Season the fowls inside and out with salt and pepper.
Prepare dressing as for roast duck (see article 77).
Fill the fowls with the dressing and skewer them tightly.
Place the fowls in a roasting pan, backs upward.
Dredge a little flour over the fowls and add 1½ tablespoons of fat and 1½ pints of water to the pan.
Stir the mixture well and place the pan in a preheated oven at 350°F (175°C).
Baste the fowls frequently; when browned, turn them over.
Once well done and golden brown, baste again and transfer to a heated dish.
If the gravy is not seasoned enough, add more salt and let it simmer for a few minutes.
Pour the gravy into a sauce-tureen 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.
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 + flourtop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together50,459 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
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