Why it works: Ham and clove are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,666 recipes. Both carry gamma-decalactone, which smells peach, creamy. The science ↓
To Moil a Ham
Ingredients
Directions
Simmer the ham
Cover the ham with cold water in a pot.
Cook slowly until the meat begins to pull away from the bones.
Remove from heat and let cool partially in the water.
Finish and bake
Take off the skin and trim excess fat as desired.
Insert cloves into the meat.
Bake in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for 30 to 45 minutes.
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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Ham + clovetop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,666 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-decalactone (peach, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Ham
- The main cut; slow simmering breaks down its connective tissue so the meat becomes tender.
- Cloves
- Adds a warm, spiced aroma as they are pressed into the surface of the meat.
The step that matters
Cook slowly until the meat begins to pull away from the bones. A gentle simmer softens connective tissue and keeps muscle fibres tender. A hard boil tightens the proteins, toughens the meat and dries it out.
“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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