Name: Mince Meat
Ingredients: 2 lbs; 1 nutmeg; 4 lemons; 2 tablespoons; lemon peel; orange peel

Why it works: Lemon and orange match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,634 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Mince Meat

Ingredients

Directions

Combine the meat, suet, brown sugar, currants, raisins, citron, chopped apples, wine, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon peel, orange peel, grated lemon rind, and lemon juice in a bowl.
Bake the mixture, adding 2 tablespoons of brandy at the time of baking.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

86Calories

2 gProtein

1 gFat

20 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 3 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Orange	1 medium (131g)	62
Nutmeg	1 tsp ground (2.2g)	12
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Jacqueline Harrison Smith (ed.). 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.

Lemon + orangetop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together10,634 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Nutmeg + lemontop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together11,318 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Nutmeg + orangetop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,746 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Suet (in the method): Adds richness and fat that keeps the mincemeat moist and tender.
Brown sugar (in the method): Adds sweetness and helps preserve the mixture while it bakes.
Currants (in the method): Add concentrated sweetness and chewy texture throughout the filling.
Raisins (in the method): Add sweetness and a chewy texture to the filling.
Chopped apples (in the method): Add moisture and tartness that balances the sweetness.
Lemon juice: Adds acidity that brightens the flavour and balances the sugar.