Why it works: Pepper and nutmeg match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 13,015 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
To Make Croquets
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the mixture
Take cold fowl or fresh meat of any kind, with slices of ham, fat and lean, and chop together very fine.
Add half as much stale bread, grated, salt, pepper, grated nutmeg, a teaspoonful of made mustard, a tablespoonful of catsup, and a lump of butter.
Knead all well together until it resembles sausage meat.
Shape and fry
Shape the mixture into cakes.
Dip the cakes in the yolk of a beaten egg.
Cover them thickly with grated bread.
Fry them until a light brown.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Eggs | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Nutmeg | 1 tsp ground (2.2g) | 12 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Mustard | 1 tsp (5g) yellow | 3 |
| 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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Pepper + nutmegtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together13,015 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Mustard + nutmegtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,019 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
-
Mustard + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,430 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Egg + nutmegtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together24,744 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
-
Mustard + eggtop 28% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,210 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
Egg and nutmeg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 24,744 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Yolk of a beaten egg binds the coating so the grated bread adheres to each cake.
- Stale bread (in the method)
- Absorbs moisture and gives the mixture body so the cakes hold their shape.
- Butter (in the method)
- Adds fat and richness, keeping the cooked cakes moist and tender.
The step that matters
Knead until it resembles sausage meat. The mixture must be evenly combined and cohesive so the cakes hold their shape and do not crumble when dipped and fried.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, pepper, nutmeg):
- Spinachfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Sweet potatofits better
- Mustardthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, pepper, nutmeg. 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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