Why it works: Sage and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,388 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Raised Pork Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Remove the rind and bone from the pork loin.
Cut the pork into chops and flatten them.
Season the chops with sage, black pepper, and salt.
Pack the seasoned pork closely into a raised crust.
Cover with a top crust and pinch the edges to seal.
Brush the crust with egg yolk.
Bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) for two hours.
Remove the lid, pour off the fat, and add seasoned gravy.
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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Sage + peppertop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,388 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Pork + sagetop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,527 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-hexenal (green, leafy).
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Pork + peppertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together22,121 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Pork + saucetop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,666 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Pepper + saucetop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together15,303 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Pepper and sauce barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 15,303 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Swap the sage
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pork, pepper, egg, sauce):
- Parsleyfits better
- Tarragonfits about as well
- Nutmegfits about as well
- Sagethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pork, pepper, egg, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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