Why it works: Sage and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 887 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓
Roast Pork
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Score the skin of the pork in squares or parallel lines, cutting just through to the flesh.
Mix breadcrumbs, sage, onion, pepper, coarse sea salt, grated lemon peel, and lemon juice to create a force-meat.
Rub this mixture into the scored skin before placing the meat in the oven.
Roast
Place the pork in a roaster and pour 1 cup of boiling water over it.
Heat gradually until the fat begins to run, then increase the heat.
Baste often to keep the skin tender and crisp.
Roast for at least 20 minutes per pound.
Rest and serve
Do not add made gravy with the meat; let it stand for at least an hour and skim before serving.
Serve with apple sauce, chili sauce, catsup, or a good bread 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.
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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Sage + lemontop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together887 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
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Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Sage + peppertop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,388 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Pork + oniontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,214 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 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
- Provides the main meat, whose fat renders during roasting to moisten and flavour the joint.
- Breadcrumbs
- Absorb the juices and fat from the force-meat, giving a moist, savoury stuffing under the skin.
- Lemon juice
- Adds acidity that brightens the rich pork fat and the herb flavours.
- Sage
- Contributes aromatic, savoury herb flavour to the force-meat.
- Onion
- Adds savoury sweetness and moisture to the force-meat.
The step that matters
Heat gradually until the fat begins to run. Starting low lets fat render slowly so the skin dries and crisps instead of scorching before the meat cooks through. Raising the heat too early can burn the skin while the interior is still underdone.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pork, sage, pepper, lemon):
- Capsicumfits better
- Spinachfits better
- Carrotfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pork, sage, pepper, lemon. 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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