Why it works: Pepper and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Veal Stew
Ingredients
Directions
Make the stew
Place the veal strips in a skillet and cover with cold water.
Bring to a gentle simmer, ensuring the water does not boil away.
Add the sliced potato and stew for 20 to 30 minutes until the meat is tender.
Finish and serve
In a bowl, mix the flour with a little milk to create a paste.
Once the meat is tender, add the milk and flour mixture to the broth.
Season with butter, salt, pepper, and parsley if desired.
Slice the hard‑boiled eggs and add them to the broth.
Bring to a boil once, then serve with or without toast.
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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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Potato + parsleytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,855 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Potato + milktop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,611 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Veal
- Provides the main meat, which becomes tender through slow simmering in water.
- Potato
- Thickens the broth slightly as it cooks and adds body to the stew.
- Eggs
- Add richness and a soft, firm texture when sliced into the warm broth.
- Milk
- Adds creaminess and mellows the broth's flavour when combined with the flour.
- Flour
- Thickens the milk and broth, giving the stew a smoother, lightly thickened body.
The step that matters
Adding the flour and milk paste. Flour mixed into a paste with a little milk first disperses evenly; added directly to hot liquid it clumps. Stir it in once the meat is tender so the broth thickens smoothly.
Swap the parsley
The recipe marks parsley as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (veal, potato, egg, milk, flour, butter, pepper):
- Parsleythe original
- Nutmegfits about as well
- Cinnamonfits less well
- Turmericfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against veal, potato, egg, milk, flour, butter, 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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