Name: Braized and Baked Hams
Ingredients: 1 ham; coarse sea salt (formerly 'bay salt'); bright Espagnole sauce; 1 glass sherry; 1 pint braising liquor; dressed vegetables for garnish

Why it works: Ham and sherry work together. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 377 recipes. Both carry 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol, which smells smoky, clove. The science ↓

Braized and Baked Hams

Ingredients

Directions

Simmer the ham gently on low heat for 5 to 6 hours, probing occasionally after 4 hours to check tenderness.
Once tender, let the ham sit in its own juices for 1 hour, then drain it.
Remove the rind, leaving 4 inches near the knuckle-bone, and create a decorative design with a sharp knife.
Trim the fat for a neat appearance, then place the ham on a baking sheet.
Absorb excess grease with a clean cloth, then glaze the ham and bake for 10 minutes.
Glaze again and return to the oven for 5 more minutes.
Serve garnished with dressed vegetables and sauce made from Espagnole, sherry, and braising liquor.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Ham + sherrytop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together377 recipes

Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).
Ham + saucetop 22% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together1,314 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Sauce + sherrytop 23% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together1,097 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).