Why it works: Onion and garlic match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 29,058 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓
Ham Hock Stock
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Make the stock first.
Put the ham hocks in the pressure cooker.
Put 6 cups of water over them then set the cooker to brown.
Heating the water and the hocks brings it up to pressure quicker.
Add the onion, garlic cloves, serrano chile, peppercorns, bay leaves and celery to the pot.
Pressure cook
It won't take long for the water to get hot, but just before boiling, stop the browning, put on the lid, and set it to high pressure.
Cook for 10 minutes.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Pork | 100g cooked | 242 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Celery | 1 stalk (40g) | 6 |
| Garlic | 1 clove (3g) | 4 |
| Bay Leaf | 1 leaf (0.6g) | 2 |
| Water | not in our table | 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.
-
Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together29,058 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Clove + celerytop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together4,668 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-decalactone (peach, creamy).
-
Onion + celerytop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,518 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Garlic + clovetop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,368 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
-
Garlic + celerytop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,321 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Ham hock
- Releases collagen and savoury flavour into the water, giving the stock body and depth.
- Smoked ham hock
- Adds smoky, cured flavour and salt-cured meat notes to the stock.
- White onion
- Adds sweetness and aromatic depth as it softens in the liquid.
- Garlic cloves
- Contribute pungent aroma that mellows and sweetens during cooking.
- Celery
- Adds vegetal aroma and a savoury background note to the stock.
The step that matters
Stop the browning before the water boils. Browning mode heats the pot quickly; if the water is left to boil under browning, it can scorch the bottom and spoil the stock. Switching to high pressure just before boiling keeps the pot from burning.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (ham, onion, garlic, celery):
- Parsleyfits better
- Thymefits better
- Capersfits better
- Clovethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against ham, onion, garlic, celery. 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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