Why it works: Egg and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 34% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 23,333 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
Savoury Sausages
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 the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Shape
In a bowl, mix the breadcrumbs, egg, lentil purée, chopped onion, and seasoning.
Form the mixture into sausage shapes.
Roll the sausages in wheatmeal.
Bake and serve
Bake in the oven until golden brown.
Serve with vegetables and sauce.
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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Egg + oniontop 34% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together23,333 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Egg and onion barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 23,333 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg
- Binds the mixture so the sausages hold their shape.
- Breadcrumbs
- Absorb moisture and give the sausages body and structure.
- Lentil purée
- Provides the main filling and moisture, giving a soft, hearty interior.
- Onion
- Adds savory flavor and aroma to the mixture.
The step that matters
Form the mixture into sausage shapes. If the mixture is too wet or warm, it can be hard to shape and may crack or slump. Chilled lentil purée and well-beaten egg help the mixture firm up and hold its form during baking.
“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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