Why it works: Ham and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,475 recipes. Both carry trans-2-decenal, which smells waxy, orange. The science ↓
To Broil Ham
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the ham
Cut the ham into thick slices and remove all the fat.
Preheat the grill to very hot.
Broil and serve
Place the ham slices on the grill and broil, turning often.
Once cooked, transfer the ham to a platter.
Top each piece of ham with a generous amount of butter.
Serve immediately.
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 + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,475 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
- Ham
- Is the main protein; its thick slices cook through and brown on the hot grill.
- Butter
- Adds richness and moisture, melting over the hot ham to give a savoury flavour.
The step that matters
Broil on very hot heat, turning often. Very high heat browns the surface quickly, while frequent turning keeps the thick slices from scorching on one side before the centre is heated through.
“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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