Why it works: Carrot and celery match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,173 recipes. Both carry myristicin, which smells spice, warm. The science ↓
Removes of Ham
Ingredients
Directions
Soak and clean
Soak the ham in cold water for a few hours if it is new, or 24 hours if it is properly seasoned.
For foreign hams, soak for 2 to 4 days, changing the water every 12 hours in winter and twice daily in summer.
Scrape off any slimy surface from the ham before soaking.
After soaking, boil the ham in water for 1 hour.
Scrape and wash the ham in cold water.
Braise
Place the ham in a braising pan with carrots, onions, celery, herbs, mace, and cloves.
Add enough broth to float the ham.
Braise gently on the stove for about 4 hours without boiling.
Cool, trim and serve
Once done, remove the pan from the heat and let the ham cool in the braise to retain moisture.
After partially cooling, trim the ham.
Place the trimmed ham back in the braising pan with some of its stock.
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.
-
Carrot + celerytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together10,173 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
-
Carrot + clovetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,873 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
-
Carrot + oniontop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together21,601 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Celery + clovetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together4,668 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-decalactone (peach, creamy).
-
Mace + clovetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,400 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Ham
- Main meat that becomes tender and juicy through long, gentle braising.
- Carrots
- Add sweetness and aromatic flavour to the braising liquid.
- Onions
- Add savoury depth and sweetness as they soften and release flavour into the broth.
- Celery
- Adds aromatic, savoury flavour to the braising liquid.
- Broth
- Provides the liquid that keeps the ham moist and carries flavour into the meat.
- Mace and cloves
- Contribute warm, aromatic spice notes to the braise.
The step that matters
Braise gently without boiling. Boiling makes the meat's muscle fibres contract hard and tighten, leaving it tough and dry. A gentle simmer lets the connective tissue break down slowly, so the ham stays tender and moist.
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (ham, carrot, onion, celery, clove):
- Parsleyfits better
- Thymefits better
- Marjoramfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against ham, carrot, onion, celery, clove. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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.
You might also like
Carrot Soup134 recipes
Cream of Celery Soup113 recipes
Celery Stew25 recipes
Celery Croquettes16 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.