Why it works: Clove and ginger match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,038 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Sughlio, or Gravy of Beef Extracted in Wine
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the beef as directed in previous recipes, substituting Madeira or sherry for water.
Carefully close the pot to prevent steam from escaping.
Alternatively, place the meat and wine in a jar set in boiling water or in an oven.
Season with mace, cloves, ginger, and appropriate seasonings.
Add suitable vegetables like onions, garlic, mushrooms, and celery.
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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Clove + gingertop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,038 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together29,058 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
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Beef + mushroomtop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,232 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
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Sherry + mushroomtop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,176 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-methylphenol (smoky, clove).
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Ginger + garlictop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,402 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, sherry, clove, ginger, onion, garlic, mushroom):
- Thymefits better
- Cuminfits better
- Turmericfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beef, sherry, clove, ginger, onion, garlic, mushroom. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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