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 ↓
Modern Cookery
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Boil water slowly and press the beef under a heavy weight while hot.
Trim the edges of the beef carefully.
Cure
Rub ¾ lb of coarse sugar into the meat at first.
Mix saltpetre, coarse sugar, bay salt, common salt, and pepper with the beef.
Let it cure for 4 days.
Finish
If desired, omit treacle or add cloves and mace in the same proportion as for spiced beef.
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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Sugar + peppertop 32% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together19,401 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Beef + sugartop 37% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,435 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar and pepper barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 19,401 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef
- The main meat, which the cure penetrates and firms as it is salted.
- Saltpetre
- Helps preserve the meat and gives the cured beef its characteristic pink colour.
- Coarse sugar
- Balances the saltiness and softens the harshness of the cure.
- Treacle
- Adds sweetness and dark colour, and is optional in this recipe.
- Pepper
- Adds a sharp, aromatic bite to the cured meat.
The step that matters
Let it cure for 4 days. Salt curing draws moisture out of the meat and carries salt and curing agents inward over time. The cure must reach the whole piece, so thin spots or uneven rubbing can leave parts under-cured.
“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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