Why it works: Sauce and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,787 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Veal Patties
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a good oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the filling
Prepare the white sauce by melting butter, adding flour, and whisking in water or stock until thickened.
Cook the diced veal in the sauce for 20 minutes, then stir in pepper, salt, and cream.
Assemble and bake
Line deep patty pans with the pastry and fill with the meat mixture.
Cover with more pastry, cut a hole in the top, and mark the edges with the back of a knife.
Brush the top with egg yolk and bake at 400°F (200°C) for 30 minutes.
Serve hot.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Sauce + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,787 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Veal + peppertop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,049 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Cream + peppertop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together21,449 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Cream + eggtop 24% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together42,166 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
-
Sauce + peppertop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together15,303 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Cream and pepper barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 21,449 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Rough puff pastry
- Forms the flaky, layered crust that puffs and browns during baking.
- Veal
- Provides the tender meat filling that cooks gently in the sauce.
- Butter
- Enriches the white sauce and adds richness and flavour to the filling.
- Flour
- Thickens the white sauce so the filling holds together rather than running out.
- Cream
- Adds moisture and richness to the filling, softening its texture.
- Egg yolk
- Gives the pastry top a glossy, golden browning when brushed on before baking.
The step that matters
Cook the veal in the sauce. Simmering the veal gently for the full 20 minutes lets it become tender, while the sauce thickens enough to hold the filling together. If the sauce is too thin, the filling will soak the pastry and leak during baking.
“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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