Why it works: Spinach and peas work together. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 550 recipes. Both carry 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells green bell pepper, earthy. The science ↓
Leg of Lamb
Ingredients
Directions
In a pot, add the leg of lamb and cover with plain mutton broth or water.
Skim the surface and bring to a gentle boil.
Cook for 45 minutes or until the lamb is tender.
Serve garnished with spinach and stewed peas or asparagus peas.
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.
-
Spinach + peastop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together550 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
-
Lamb + muttontop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together598 recipes
Shared aroma: trans,trans-2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
-
Lamb + spinachtop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together300 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
-
Lamb + peastop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together650 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
-
Mutton + peastop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together598 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Leg of lamb
- Provides the main protein, which becomes tender and juicy as it simmers slowly.
The step that matters
Skimming the surface before the boil. Skimming removes foam and impurities that rise as the liquid heats, keeping the broth clearer and cleaner in flavor.
Swap the spinach
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lamb, mutton, peas):
- Asparagusfits better
- Potatofits about as well
- Tomatofits about as well
- Spinachthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against lamb, mutton, peas. 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.
More leg of lamb recipes
You might also like
Mutton Broth292 recipes
Green Peas229 recipes
Haricot Mutton59 recipes
Mutton Soup56 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.