Why it works: Liver and sage work together. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 229 recipes. Both carry 1,8-cineol, which smells eucalyptus, camphor. The science ↓
A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare
Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
Prepare the pig by cleaning it thoroughly.
Stuff and roast
Stuff the pig with a mixture of bread crumbs, liver, brains, and sage.
Roast the pig in the oven, ensuring it is well-watched to achieve a crisp, golden skin.
Serve
Serve the roast pig with its own juices.
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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Liver + sagetop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together229 recipes
Shared aroma: 1,8-cineol (eucalyptus, camphor).
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Bread + sagetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,778 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Bread + livertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together731 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Suckling pig
- Forms the main roast; its skin crisps and browns in the oven's dry heat.
- Bread crumbs
- Absorb the juices and fat from the filling, adding bulk and a softer texture.
- Pig's liver
- Adds richness and a deep, savory flavor to the stuffing.
- Pig's brains
- Contribute a soft, creamy texture and richness to the stuffing.
- Mild sage
- Adds a fragrant, herbal aroma that complements the rich pork.
The step that matters
Roast the pig until the skin is crisp and golden. Dry, sustained oven heat browns the skin and renders its fat. Watching it closely prevents the skin from burning before the meat is fully cooked through.
“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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