Why it works: Parsley and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Pretty Dish of Beef Fillets
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the components
Cut the beef into neat round slices, 1 inch thick, and fry or grill them.
Brush the cooked beef with melted glaze.
Prepare the butter by cutting it neatly and frying or baking it.
Skin the tomatoes, slice them thickly, and bake for a few minutes.
Cook the Brussels sprouts, then mash them with butter and seasoning.
Plate and serve
Arrange the mashed potatoes in a circle on a plate.
Place the beef fillets around the potatoes, each topped with a piece of butter and a slice of tomato.
Form the mashed Brussels sprouts into a dome shape in the center of the potatoes.
Make maitre d’hôtel butter and place small pats around the dish just before serving.
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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Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Parsley + potatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,855 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Tomato + potatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,798 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beef + tomatotop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,448 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beef + potatotop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,052 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef fillet
- Provides the main protein; frying or grilling browns the surface and builds savory flavor.
- Butter
- Adds richness and moisture, melting over the hot beef and vegetables for flavor.
- Brussels sprouts
- Provide body and a mild, slightly bitter vegetable flavor when mashed with butter.
- Tomatoes
- Add acidity and moisture; brief baking softens them and mellows their sharpness.
- Glaze
- Adds a glossy coat and concentrated savory-sweet flavor to the cooked beef.
- Mashed potatoes
- Form the starchy base that holds the beef and vegetables and soaks up juices.
The step that matters
Frying or grilling the beef fillets. Beef fillet is lean and tender, so high heat browns the surface quickly while keeping the interior from overcooking and drying out.
Swap the brussels sprouts
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, butter, parsley, lemon, tomato, potato):
- Carrotfits better
- Chivefits better
- Okrafits better
- Brussels sproutsthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beef, butter, parsley, lemon, tomato, potato. 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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