Why it works: Ham and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,475 recipes. Both carry trans-2-decenal, which smells waxy, orange. The science ↓
Devilled Ham
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Mince the ham very finely.
In a small saucepan, combine the minced ham, butter, and a good seasoning of cayenne.
Heat and serve
Heat the mixture until it reaches boiling point.
Spread the devilled ham on very hot croutons and serve immediately.
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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Ham + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,475 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
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Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Ham + peppertop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,058 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cooked ham
- Provides the main meaty body and flavour of the spread.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, giving the minced ham a smooth, spreadable texture.
The step that matters
Heat the mixture until it reaches boiling point. Heating the ham and butter together helps the fat melt through the minced meat and blend it into a smooth spread. Overheating can make the butter separate and the spread greasy, so stop once it reaches boiling point.
“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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