Name: Beef A-LA-mode
Ingredients: 1 small buttock of beef or leg of mutton; 12 cloves; 8 blades of mace; 1 teaspoon allspice, finely ground; 1 large handful of parsley, chopped; assorted herbs, finely chopped; bacon, cut as for beef a-la-daub; pepper, to taste; coarse sea salt, to taste; 4 large onions, chopped; 4 blades of garlic, finely chopped; 6 bay leaves; 1 handful of champignons; 1 pint porter or ale; ½ pint red wine; cayenne pepper, to taste

Why it works: Clove and allspice match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,874 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

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.

Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together7,874 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together34,122 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Allspice + parsleytop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,289 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Parsley + garlictop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together9,308 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

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

What each ingredient does

Beef or leg of mutton: Forms the main body of the dish, becoming tender and sliceable through long slow simmering.
Bacon: Adds fat and savory flavor that melts into the meat and gravy during long cooking.
Onions: Break down during simmering to sweeten and thicken the gravy with body.
Porter or ale: Adds malty depth and bitterness to the braising liquid and gravy.
Red wine: Contributes acidity and deep color to the braising liquid and gravy.
Champignons: Add earthy flavor and moisture to the gravy.

The step that matters

Simmering the beef gently in a covered pot. Long, low, covered simmering breaks down the connective tissue in tough cuts so the meat becomes tender. A hard boil or an uncovered pot can toughen the outer meat and reduce the liquid too quickly.

Swap the mace

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, clove, allspice, parsley, pepper, onion, garlic):

Thymefits better
Marjoramfits better
Cuminfits better
Macethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, clove, allspice, parsley, pepper, onion, garlic. 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.

Beef A-LA-mode

Beef A-LA-mode

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the beef

Braise and make the gravy

Serve