Why it works: Meat and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 19% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,777 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
Devonshire Stew
Ingredients
Directions
In a large pot, combine the mixed vegetables.
If using, add the meat, salt, pepper, and chopped herbs.
Cover the pot and let it stew on low heat for 1.5 to 2 hours.
Stir occasionally and add water if necessary to prevent sticking.
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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Meat + peppertop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,777 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
- Mixed vegetables
- Make up the bulk of the stew and build body and flavour as they soften slowly.
- Meat
- Adds savoury flavour and richness as its fat and juices melt into the liquid.
- Chopped herbs
- Add aroma and fresh, herbal flavour to the finished stew.
The step that matters
Keep the heat low and stir. Gentle, low heat softens the vegetables evenly without boiling them apart. Mixtures with little liquid can stick and scorch on the base of the pot, so occasional stirring and adding water as needed keep the stew from burning.
“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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