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A Tureen of Mutton and Broth, with Roots

A stew of mutton and veal with carrots, parsnips, onion, garlic, and herbs.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 10 ingredients
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Why it works: Carrot and parsnip match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,097 recipes. Both carry 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells green bell pepper, earthy. The science ↓

A Tureen of Mutton and Broth, with Roots

Ingredients

Directions

The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.

  1. In a large pot, combine mutton, veal, carrots, parsnips, onion, and garlic.

  2. Add water and bring to a boil.

  3. Reduce heat and simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours until meat is tender.

  4. Season with salt, pepper, and fresh herbs before serving.

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.

  1. Carrot + parsniptop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,097 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).

  2. Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together17,451 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  4. Carrot + clovetop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,873 recipes

    Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).

  5. Carrot + peppertop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together14,555 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Mutton
Provides the main meat flavor and, after long simmering, becomes tender and succulent.
Veal
Adds delicate meat flavor and gelatin that gives the stew a silkier body.
Carrots
Add natural sweetness and body as they soften into the broth.
Parsnips
Contribute earthy sweetness and thicken the broth slightly as they break down.
Onion
Builds savory depth and aroma as it softens in the liquid.

The step that matters

Simmer gently rather than boil. A hard boil toughens meat proteins and makes the fibers seize, while a gentle simmer lets collagen slowly convert to gelatin, leaving the meat tender.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (mutton, veal, carrot, parsnip, onion, garlic, pepper):

  1. Parsleyfits better
  2. Cuminfits better
  3. Thymefits better
  4. Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against mutton, veal, carrot, parsnip, onion, garlic, pepper. 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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