Broiled and Devilled Toast

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.

1. Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together27,232 recipes

   Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).

2. Pepper + mustardtop 9% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together15,430 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

3. Mustard + saucetop 13% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together2,120 recipes

   Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

4. Butter + saucetop 15% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together15,338 recipes

   Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

5. Bread + mustardtop 16% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together1,484 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

Butter and sauce barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 15,338 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

Butter

Adds fat and richness, carrying the flavors and helping the spread stay moist on the toast.

Bread

Provides the crisp, golden base that holds the spread.

Mustard

Adds sharpness and acidity that cuts through the richness of the butter.

Cayenne pepper

Adds heat and a pungent, aromatic bite to the spread.

Swap the mustard

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (bread, butter, pepper, sauce):

1. Capsicumfits better
2. Tomatofits better
3. Shallotfits about as well
4. Mustardthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against bread, butter, pepper, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.