Why it works: Onion and potato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Veal Stew
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the veal
Cut the veal into small pieces.
Cover with boiling water.
Add one-half teaspoonful of salt and one small onion, browned.
Simmer until veal is tender.
Finish the stew
Add four potatoes, cut in thick slices, and cook together with one tablespoonful of butter.
Add one cupful of cold milk. Stir until smooth.
Add the veal broth gradually.
Remove bones from veal and simmer all together for five minutes, then serve.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| 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.
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. See the original page.
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 + potatotop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Milk + potatotop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,611 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
-
Butter + potatotop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,456 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Butter + oniontop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together42,912 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Veal (in the method)
- Provides the meat and, as it simmers, the flavourful broth that the stew is built on.
- Potatoes
- Soften as they cook and thicken the stew, giving it body.
- Butter
- Adds richness and fat, rounding out the flavour of the stew.
- Milk
- Adds creaminess and mild sweetness, softening the broth's flavour.
- Onion
- Browning adds savoury, aromatic depth to the broth.
The step that matters
Stir the milk in until smooth. Cold milk added to hot liquid can curdle or separate if it is added too fast or without stirring. Stirring it in steadily keeps the stew smooth and creamy.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, milk, potato):
- Chivefits about as well
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Onionthe original
- Leekfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, milk, potato. 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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