Why it works: Beef and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 18,971 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
To Broil Beef-steak
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Cut the steak into slices ¾ to 1 inch thick.
Dust the steak with pepper if desired.
Cook and serve
Place the steak on a grill over a hot fire.
Turn the steak frequently while cooking.
Cook until it reaches your preferred doneness.
Transfer the steak to a hot dish.
Rub the steak with a little butter and sprinkle with coarse sea salt.
Serve immediately to enjoy its flavor and juiciness.
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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Beef + peppertop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,971 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beef + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,847 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-furfurylthiol (coffee, roasted).
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Pepper + buttertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef steak
- Provides the main meat, which browns on the hot surface and stays juicy when not overcooked.
- Butter
- Adds richness and moisture to the cooked surface of the steak.
The step that matters
Cook until it reaches your preferred doneness. Meat keeps cooking after it leaves the heat, and high heat can dry out the outside before the centre is done. Checking the doneness during cooking helps keep the steak juicy.
“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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