Why it works: Pepper and beef are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 18,971 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
A Flank Steak
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Trim the flank steak and score it with a knife.
Season both sides with coarse sea salt and black pepper.
Cook and serve
Cook in beef drippings until browned.
Serve very 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.
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 + beeftop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,971 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
- Flank steak
- Lean beef cut that becomes tender when browned and sliced thinly against the grain.
- Coarse sea salt
- Seasons the surface and draws out moisture that helps the steak brown.
- Beef drippings
- Conducts high heat to the surface, promoting a browned crust and rich beefy flavor.
The step that matters
Cook in beef drippings until browned. The surface must be hot and dry enough to brown. Crowding the pan or leaving moisture on the steak causes steaming, which gives grey meat instead of a flavorful crust.
“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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