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Lentil Pie

A baked pie of lentils, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, herbs, and hard‑boiled eggs, topped with quartered eggs.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By T. R. Allinson · From a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg) · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Onion and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 68,474 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Lentil Pie

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Cook lentils beforehand.

  2. Peel, wash, and dice potatoes and onion.

  3. Fry potatoes and onion in butter until nearly soft.

  4. Scald and slice tomatoes.

Assemble

  1. Mix fried vegetables, lentils, tomatoes, herbs, and seasoning well together.

  2. Turn mixture into a pie dish.

  3. Pour over as much water or vegetable stock as may be required for gravy.

  4. Quarter the eggs and place them on the top.

  5. Cover with a short crust.

Bake

  1. Bake the pie for 1 to 1-1/2 hours.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

128Calories
8 gProtein
5 gFat
12 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Salt1 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.

  1. Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together68,474 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  2. Egg + peppertop 33% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together50,580 recipes

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

  3. Onion + eggtop 34% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together23,333 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

Egg and pepper barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 50,580 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

Lentils (in the method)
Form the bulk and body of the filling, holding the pie together when sliced.
Potatoes (in the method)
Add starch and a soft, filling texture to the pie.
Eggs
Add richness and firmness to the filling and topping.
Tomatoes (in the method)
Add moisture and a gentle acidity that brightens the filling.
Onion
Frying softens it and builds sweetness and aroma in the filling.
Butter (in the method)
Carries the frying of the vegetables and adds richness and browning.

The step that matters

Pour over the water or stock for gravy. The lentils, potatoes and tomatoes absorb liquid as the pie bakes. Too little liquid leaves the filling dry and stiff, so add enough to keep it moist and saucy.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, pepper):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Spinachfits better
  3. Asparagusfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against egg, pepper. 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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