Name: Little Pies, of Liver
Ingredients: livers of poultry or veal; grated suet; coarse sea salt; fine herbs; spices; 1 or 2 eggs; grated bread; ⅓ cup brandy

Why it works: Egg and bread are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 22,662 recipes. Both carry (e)-2-octenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓

Little Pies, of Liver

Ingredients

Directions

Mash the livers in a mortar.
Add grated suet, coarse sea salt, fine herbs, and spices.
Mix in 1 or 2 eggs and a little grated bread.
Stir in ⅓ cup of brandy.
Dress the pies as directed.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Egg + breadtop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together22,662 recipes

Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
Liver + breadtop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together731 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Bread + brandytop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together976 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Egg + brandytop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together7,340 recipes

Shared aroma: acetoin (butter, cream).
Liver + eggtop 28% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together1,177 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).