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Forcemeat for Game Pies, Etc

A finely minced forcemeat mixture for use as filling in game pies.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 10 ingredients
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Why it works: Parsley and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Forcemeat for Game Pies, Etc

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Mince the liver and bacon very finely.

  2. Pound the minced mixture until smooth.

  3. Add breadcrumbs, mushrooms, parsley, herbs, lemon rind, pepper, salt, and egg. Mix thoroughly until well combined.

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.

  1. Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together14,037 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  2. Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together34,122 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  3. Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together27,047 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

  4. Mushroom + peppertop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together13,580 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  5. Mushroom + parsleytop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,132 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

Eggs
Binds the mixture together so it holds its shape when cooked.
Breadcrumbs
Absorb moisture and add body, giving the forcemeat a softer, lighter texture.
Calf's liver
Adds richness and a firm, savoury body to the forcemeat.
Bacon
Adds fat and savoury flavour, keeping the forcemeat moist as it cooks.

The step that matters

Pound the minced mixture until smooth. Breaking the liver and bacon into a fine, smooth paste spreads the fat and protein evenly, so the forcemeat sets with a uniform texture rather than crumbling or feeling grainy.

“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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