Why it works: Veal and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 27% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,202 recipes. Both carry 2-heptanol, which smells bitter, floral. The science ↓
Veal Olive Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare
Cut thin slices from the fillet of veal.
Layer the veal with thin slices of bacon and a layer of forcemeat seasoned with shallot and cayenne.
Roll the layers tightly and place them in a pie dish.
Bake
Add the gravy and cream, then cover with puff pastry.
Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 1 to 1.5 hours, or 2 hours for a large pie.
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.
-
Veal + creamtop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,202 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cold fillet of veal
- Forms the main body of the pie and provides the meaty filling.
- Bacon
- Adds fat and savoury flavour that keeps the rolled veal moist as it cooks.
- Forcemeat
- Adds a seasoned, tender layer that binds the rolls and enriches the filling.
- Gravy
- Supplies liquid that moistens the filling and builds savoury flavour in the pie.
- Cream
- Adds richness and fat, giving the sauce a smoother, silkier texture.
- Puff pastry
- Forms a flaky, golden crust that encloses and seals the filling.
The step that matters
Rolling the layers tightly. Tight rolls keep the layers compact so they hold their shape when sliced and cook evenly. Loose rolls can open up and let the filling spread and dry out in the oven.
“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.
You might also like
Veal Patties50 recipes
Beef, Mutton, or Veal Broth6 recipes
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.