Name: Jamaican Beef Patties 2
Ingredients: 3 lbs. ground beef; 2 grated onions; 1 stick celery; 1/2 green pepper; Pinch of salt; Pinch of black pepper; 1 tsp. thyme; 1 hot pepper; PASTRY:; 4 1/2 c. flour; 1/2 c. butter; 1/2 c. shortening; 1/2-1/4 c. water; 1 pinch salt; TOPPING:; 2 eggs

Why it works: Celery and thyme match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,193 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

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.

Celery + thymetop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,193 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Pepper + thymetop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together11,585 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Celery + peppertop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together16,012 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Beef + oniontop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,092 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Onion + thymetop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together11,171 recipes

Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Ground beef: Provides the main savoury filling and richness once browned.
Flour: Forms the structure of the dough that holds the filling.
Butter: Adds fat and flakiness to the pastry as it melts during baking.
Shortening: Adds tenderness to the pastry by coating flour strands and limiting gluten.
Eggs: Beaten eggs brushed on top promote browning and a glossy finish.
Onions: Add sweetness and moisture to the filling as they soften while cooking.

The step that matters

Blend the fat into the flour finely. Fat must be worked evenly into the flour so it coats the flour particles. Pockets of fat melt during baking and create flaky layers, while uneven mixing can make the pastry tough or greasy in spots.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, celery, pepper, thyme, flour, butter, egg):

Leekfits better
Carrotfits better
Chivefits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, celery, pepper, thyme, flour, butter, egg. 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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Beef	100g cooked	250
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Thyme	1 tsp dried (1.4g)	4
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Pastry	not in our table	0
Water	not in our table	0
Topping	not in our table	0

Jamaican Beef Patties 2