Why it works: Ham and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,526 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
Ham and Eggs
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the chopped cold ham in a skillet over medium heat.
Add the beaten eggs to the skillet and cook until the eggs are set, stirring to combine.
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.
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.
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Ham + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,526 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Ham
- Provides savoury, salty flavour and a little browning from direct contact with the hot skillet.
- Eggs
- Set when heated to form soft, tender curds that bind the dish together.
The step that matters
Cooking the eggs until just set. Eggs turn firm and rubbery when overcooked, because the proteins tighten and squeeze out moisture. Stopping once they are just set and stirring keeps the curds soft and moist.
“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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