Name: Chili Con Carne
Ingredients: 1 pound sirloin steak; 1 pound pork butt; 1 can tomatoes; 1 can kidney beans; chili powder to taste

Why it works: Pork and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,843 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Chili Con Carne

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

Chop the sirloin steak and pork butt finely.

Make the chili

In a pot, combine the chopped meats and tomatoes.
Cook for 1 hour over medium heat.
Add the kidney beans and chili powder.
Cook for an additional 30 minutes.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Pork + tomatotop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together4,843 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Tomato + kidney beanstop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together821 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Pork + kidney beanstop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together218 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

Sirloin steak: Provides the main beef flavor and meaty texture as it cooks down.
Pork butt: Adds fat and richness, keeping the meat moist during long simmering.
Tomatoes: Contributes moisture and acidity that help form the chili's sauce.
Kidney beans: Add body and a creamy texture while absorbing the surrounding sauce.