Why it works: Olive and lettuce match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,580 recipes. Both carry trans-2-hexenal, which smells green, leafy. The science ↓
Stuffed Eggs with Mayo
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the filling
Hard boil the eggs, shell and let cool.
Cut in half crosswise, remove the yolks and place them in a bowl.
Mix the yolks with the butter and sour cream.
Add salt and pepper.
Assemble and decorate
Fill each egg half and arrange filled side down on a plate on which you previously put mayo.
On top of each egg, place a piece of pickled pepper or olive, cut to make a flower.
Decorate around the eggs with chopped lettuce.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Yogurt | 170g plain Greek | 100 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Lettuce | 1 cup shredded (36g) | 5 |
| Olive | 1 large (4g) | 4 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.
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.
-
Olive + lettucetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,580 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
-
Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Pepper + lettucetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,037 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Pepper + olivetop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together30,263 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Butter + olivetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,887 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Whites provide the structure that holds the creamy yolk filling.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a smoother, creamier texture to the yolk filling.
- Sour cream
- Adds moisture and tang, loosening the yolk filling into a spreadable texture.
- Mayo
- Adds fat and moisture to the yolks and gives the plate a base layer.
The step that matters
Hard boil the eggs, shell and let cool.. Overcooked eggs turn the yolks dry and grey-green, and eggs that are still warm tear when shelled and cut. Cooling fully before cutting keeps the whites intact and the filling smooth.
Swap the lettuce
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, butter, cream, pepper, olive):
- Capsicumfits better
- Spinachfits better
- Potatofits better
- Lettucethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, butter, cream, pepper, olive. 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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