Name: Veal Olives
Ingredients: long thin veal cutlets; thin slices of fat bacon; forcemeat (seasoned with shallot and cayenne); 1 egg (for brushing); oil (for frying); brown gravy; mushrooms (pickled or fresh); fried balls (for garnish)

Why it works: Shallot and mushroom are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,982 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Veal Olives

Ingredients

Directions

Cut long thin veal cutlets and beat them flat.
Lay thin slices of fat bacon on each cutlet.
Spread a layer of seasoned forcemeat over the bacon, adding some chopped shallot and cayenne.
Roll the cutlets tightly to about the size of 2 fingers, no longer than 3 inches.
Fasten the rolls with small skewers and brush with beaten egg.
Fry in oil until light brown.
Serve with brown gravy that includes boiled mushrooms.
Garnish with fried balls.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Shallot + mushroomtop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,982 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Veal + mushroomtop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,446 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
Veal + shallottop 19% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together920 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Egg + mushroomtop 21% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,987 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Shallot + eggtop 25% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,380 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).