Why it works: Meat and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 28% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,529 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Gravy for Roasts
Ingredients
Directions
Scrape the joint of meat instead of washing it to preserve flavor.
Wipe the joint with a clean, dry cloth.
Rub the joint with a little coarse sea salt.
Stir the fire if it grows hollow, ensuring the joint and dripping pan are returned to avoid cinders.
When the meat is nearly done, indicated by steam rising, stir the fire for a final browning.
Baste the meat well, then lightly dredge with flour to enhance appearance.
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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Meat + flourtop 28% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,529 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
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