Why it works: Egg and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 33% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 50,580 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Savoury Pie
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Boil the haricot beans the previous day.
Place the boiled beans in a pie dish.
Chop the onions and boil them in a little water until soft.
Dice the parboiled potatoes into small cubes.
Slice the tomatoes.
Cut up the hard-boiled eggs.
Assemble and bake
Mix all the ingredients (beans, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, eggs, herbs, 1 oz butter, pepper, salt) thoroughly in the pie dish.
Pour 1 pint of water over the mixture and let it cook for 1 hour in the oven.
Make a paste of the fine wheatmeal, the remaining butter, and a little cold water.
Cover the vegetables with the paste.
Bake the pie for 1 hour in a moderate oven.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| 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.
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.
-
Egg + peppertop 33% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together50,580 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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
- Haricot beans (in the method)
- Provide the main bulk and body of the filling.
- Potatoes (in the method)
- Their starch thickens the filling as it cooks and softens.
- Onions (in the method)
- Softened onions add sweetness and a savoury aroma.
- Tomatoes (in the method)
- Add acidity and moisture that brightens the filling.
- Butter (in the method)
- Adds fat for richness and a tender, flavourful paste.
- Wheatmeal (in the method)
- Forms the paste that structures and seals the top crust.
The step that matters
Making the paste. Using only a little cold water and not overworking the paste keeps the fat in small pieces, which makes the crust tender rather than tough.
“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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