Why it works: Beef and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 18,971 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
To Broil Beef Steaks
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Trim the beef steaks from the tender rump of beef.
Heat the gridiron until hot but not burning.
Wipe the gridiron with fresh mutton suet.
Season the steaks with black pepper, but do not add salt yet.
Broil and serve
Place the steaks on the gridiron and broil for 8 to 10 minutes, turning once.
Catch any juices that drain from the steaks in a dish.
Serve immediately on hot plates.
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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Beef + peppertop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,971 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beef + muttontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,373 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Mutton + peppertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,442 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef steaks
- Provide the main meat, which browns and firms as it broils.
- Fresh mutton suet
- Greases the gridiron so the steaks do not stick and fat helps the surface brown.
The step that matters
Heat the gridiron until hot but not burning. A very hot, clean surface sears the outside quickly, locking in juices and building browning. If it is too cool the steaks stick and steam; if it burns, the suet and meat taste bitter.
“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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