Why it works: Beans and pork are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,000 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Pork and Beans
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare the beans
Pick over the beans and soak them overnight.
In the morning, wash and drain the beans.
Boil the beans in cold water with baking soda.
Once boiling, drain the beans again.
Cover the beans with cold water and boil for 15 minutes until the skins crack when blown upon.
Drain the beans again and place them in an earthen bean pot.
Season and assemble
Add coarse sea salt and molasses to the pot.
Cover the pot with hot water.
Scald the salt pork with hot water.
Score the rind of the salt pork.
Place the salt pork in the center of the beans.
Bake
Bake the pot in a 350°F (175°C) oven for six hours or longer, adding hot water as needed to keep the beans moist.
Keep the pot covered to prevent burning on top.
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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Beans + porktop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,000 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beans + molassestop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together491 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Molasses + porktop 34% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together825 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beans
- Form the bulk of the dish and, once cooked through, give it a tender, creamy texture.
- Baking soda
- Raises the pot's alkalinity, helping the bean skins soften during the initial boil.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness and deep color, and helps the beans brown during slow baking.
- Salt pork
- Renders fat and flavor into the beans as it bakes, adding richness and savoriness.
The step that matters
Keeping the beans moist during the long bake. Beans absorb water as they cook, and if the liquid evaporates the top can dry and scorch while the interior stays firm. Adding hot water as needed and keeping the pot covered maintains moisture and gentle, even heat over the many hours of baking.
Swap the beans
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (molasses, pork):
- Beansthe original
- Peanutfits about as well
- Sesamefits less well
- Nutsfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against molasses, pork. 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.
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