Why it works: Butter and mushroom are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,525 recipes. Both carry trans-2-decenal, which smells waxy, orange. The science ↓
Broiled Steak
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Select a good quality steak, preferably Porterhouse or loin.
Preheat a gridiron (grill) and grease it with butter.
Cook
Place the steak on the hot grill over hot coals.
Cook until blood begins to surface on the top side before turning.
Cook rapidly at first to retain juices, turning frequently to avoid scorching.
Do not add salt while cooking to prevent blood from escaping.
Serve
Once done, remove the steak to a platter and season to taste.
Serve with mushrooms.
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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Butter + mushroomtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,525 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Steak
- Is the main protein; its juices are kept in by rapid early searing.
- Butter
- Greases the grill so the steak does not stick.
The step that matters
Cook rapidly at first, then turn often. A very hot start sears the surface quickly, helping retain juices, while frequent turning prevents scorching on the outside before the inside is cooked.
“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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