Why it works: Pepper and allspice match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,395 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Larded Shoulder of Mutton
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the mutton
Cut the salt fat pork into narrow, long strips.
Roll the strips in a mixture of pepper, allspice, and vinegar.
Make incisions in the shoulder of mutton with a thin knife and insert the pork strips, leaving ¼ inch projecting.
Cook and baste
Place the shoulder in a dripping pan and pour boiling water mixed with claret over it.
Cover the shoulder with another pan and cook for 2 hours.
Baste frequently with its own gravy for 1.5 hours.
Baste three times with melted butter and currant jelly.
Remove the upper pan to allow the meat to brown.
Finish and serve
Dish the meat.
Thicken the strained gravy with browned flour.
Boil the gravy once before serving.
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.
-
Pepper + allspicetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,395 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Allspice + curranttop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,359 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl benzoate (fruity, sweet).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Allspice + flourtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,302 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Vinegar + curranttop 13% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together693 recipes
Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, pear).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Salt fat pork
- Melts slowly during cooking, keeping the lean mutton moist and adding richness.
- Mutton shoulder (in the method)
- Provides the main meat, which becomes tender through long, moist cooking.
- Browned flour
- Thickens the gravy and adds a toasted, deeper flavor.
- Currant jelly
- Adds sweetness and helps the surface take on a glossy brown coat when basted.
- Claret
- Adds acidity and wine flavor to the cooking liquid.
The step that matters
Remove the upper pan to allow the meat to brown. Covering the meat traps steam and keeps it moist; uncovering it lets dry heat brown the surface. Removing the cover too early can dry the meat, while leaving it on too long leaves the surface pale.
Swap the currant
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pork, pepper, allspice, vinegar, butter, flour):
- Lemonfits better
- Limefits better
- Mangofits better
- Currantthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pork, pepper, allspice, vinegar, butter, flour. 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.
You might also like
Pork Cake107 recipes
Roast Pork82 recipes
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.