Why it works: Pepper and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 19% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 50,459 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Sirloin Steak
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Cut the sirloin steak into two portions, trimming off excess fat.
Dust the meat lightly with pepper and flour, then roll it tightly and secure with a long skewer.
Cook
Broil the meat over a hot bed of coals to seal in the juices.
Place a piece of fat in a baking pan, add the meat, and roast in a 400°F (200°C) oven for about 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven, take out the skewer, and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.
Make the gravy
Make gravy by adding ½ cup boiling water to the baking pan with 1 teaspoon browned flour; season to taste and pour off excess grease.
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 + flourtop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together50,459 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Sirloin steak
- The main cut, whose fat and juices flavour the meat as it cooks.
- Flour
- Coats the outside of the meat and thickens the pan juices into gravy.
The step that matters
Judging doneness in the rolled roast. A rolled cut is thick and uneven, so the centre can stay underdone while the outside overcooks. The 20-minute time is only a guide, so check the internal temperature rather than relying on the clock alone.
“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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