Name: Favourite Pie
Ingredients: 2 breakfastcupfuls of allinson breadcrumbs; 2 breakfastcupfuls of tinned tomatoes; 2 onions; 3 eggs; 1 dessertspoonful of curry; 1 inch long; salt

Why it works: Tomato and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 20,633 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Favourite Pie

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

Boil the macaroni until tender, then cut into 1-inch pieces.
Fry the onions until brown in the butter.

Make the filling

Mix the breadcrumbs with the tinned tomatoes.
Add the beaten eggs, curry, onion, and salt to the mixture.
Combine the mixture with the macaroni.

Bake

Transfer the mixture into a pie dish.
Bake the pie for 1 hour.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

599Calories

22 gProtein

7 gFat

110 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 5 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
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.

By T. R. Allinson. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg).

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.

Tomato + oniontop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together20,633 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Onion + eggtop 34% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together23,333 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Tomato + eggtop 34% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together5,890 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

Onion and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 23,333 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

Macaroni (in the method): Forms the bulk and body of the pie, giving it a substantial, sliceable texture.
Eggs: Bind the mixture as they set in the oven, holding the pie together when sliced.
Breadcrumbs: Absorb liquid and add body, helping the filling hold its shape.
Tinned tomatoes: Add moisture and acidity, keeping the filling soft while it bakes.
Onions: Add savoury sweetness and aroma when fried until browned.