Why it works: Flour and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 106,462 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Rump Steak Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the filling
Cut the rump steak into thin slices.
Season the slices with coarse sea salt and black pepper.
Dip each piece into flour and place them in a small pie dish, forming a dome on top.
Add ½ cup of water to the dish.
Top and bake
Cover with ¾ pound of half puff pastry.
Brush the top with beaten egg.
Bake in a 350°F (175°C) oven for about 1 hour.
Serve hot or cold.
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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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Pepper + flourtop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together50,459 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Pepper + eggtop 33% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together50,580 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Flour and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 106,462 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
- Rump steak
- Provides the meat that becomes tender during the long, gentle bake.
- Flour
- Coats the meat and helps thicken the juices into a gravy.
- Half puff pastry
- Forms a flaky, crisp crust that rises and browns in the oven.
- Egg
- Brushed on as an egg wash to give the pastry a glossy, golden browning.
The step that matters
Brush the top with beaten egg. An even egg wash gives the pastry its golden, glossy colour. Thin or uneven coverage can leave pale patches, and pooled egg can cause uneven browning.
“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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