Why it works: Ham and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,475 recipes. Both carry trans-2-decenal, which smells waxy, orange. The science ↓
To Broil Ham
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Cut the ham into thin slices.
Soak the slices in hot water for 10 to 15 minutes.
Dry the slices with a cloth.
Broil and finish
Place the slices on a hot grill and broil for a few minutes.
Butter the ham and season with a little pepper.
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 + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,475 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
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Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Ham + peppertop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,058 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Ham
- Forms the main body of the dish and browns on the hot grill.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness to the surface, improving flavor and helping it brown.
The step that matters
Place the slices on a hot grill and broil for a few minutes.. Thin slices cook quickly, so a few minutes too long dries them out. Drying the slices first helps them brown on the grill rather than steam.
“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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