Why it works: Mushroom and ham are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,486 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-ol, which smells mushroom, earthy. The science ↓
Modern Cookery
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Clean the mushroom buttons with salt and a flannel, then wipe them dry and slice.
Make the stew
In a pot, simmer the ham and herbs together for about 30 minutes.
Add the sliced mushrooms to the pot and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
If desired, stir in Harvey's sauce and claret to enhance flavor.
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.
-
Mushroom + hamtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,486 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
-
Mushroom + saucetop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,480 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Ham + saucetop 22% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,314 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Mushroom buttons
- Release moisture and savory flavor as they cook, forming the body of the stew.
- Ham
- Adds savory, salty meat flavor that seasons the simmering liquid.
- Harvey's sauce
- Adds concentrated savory, tangy depth to the finished stew.
The step that matters
Simmering the ham and herbs before adding mushrooms. Ham needs a long, gentle simmer so its flavor disperses into the liquid. Mushrooms added too early would release their moisture and overcook, so they go in only for the final 10 minutes.
“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.
You might also like
Mushroom Soup60 recipes
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Mutton Broth292 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.