Name: Roast Turkey, with Giblet Gravy
Ingredients: 1 turkey; stuffing of choice; water; salt; pepper; flour

Why it works: Turkey and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,636 recipes. Both carry myristicin, which smells spice, warm. The science ↓

Roast Turkey, with Giblet Gravy

Ingredients

Directions

Singe and clean the turkey as directed.
Gently lift the skin from the breast without breaking it.
Place a thin layer of stuffing between the skin and flesh.
Stuff the body cavity lightly with the remaining stuffing.
Draw the neck skin over the back and secure with a skewer.
Tuck the wing tips under the back and fasten with a skewer.
Insert the drumsticks into the openings and tie them together.
Sew up the vent where the stuffing was added.
Moisten the skin with water and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and flour.
Place the turkey in a roasting pan with a little water and roast for 20 minutes per pound.
Baste with the pan juices after 25 minutes, then every 10-15 minutes until done.

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.

Turkey + peppertop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,636 recipes

Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
Pepper + flourtop 19% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together50,459 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Turkey + flourtop 22% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together963 recipes

Shared aroma: eugenol (clove, spicy).