Why it works: Pepper and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,923 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Pork Cutlets, Broiled
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Season the pork cutlets with pepper and coarse sea salt.
Brush the cutlets with oil.
Cook
Place them on a hot grill over a clear fire.
Turn the cutlets two or three times to brown evenly on both sides.
Cook thoroughly for 16 to 18 minutes.
Serve
Serve on a hot dish with tomato sauce or piquant sauce.
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 + tomatotop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Pork + tomatotop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,843 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Pork + peppertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together22,121 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
- Pork cutlets
- Provide the main protein, which browns on the grill and becomes tender when cooked through.
- Oil
- Coats the cutlets so they brown evenly and do not stick to the grill.
The step that matters
Turn the cutlets two or three times. Turning promotes even browning on both sides while the centre cooks through. Leaving one side too long over direct heat can scorch the surface before the inside is done.
Swap the tomato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pork, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Tomatothe original
- Carrotfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against pork, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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