Why it works: Pepper and beef 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 ↓
Steak Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the crust
Mix shredded suet with flour and cold water to make a stiff crust, adding salt to taste.
Season the beef or mutton steaks with pepper and salt.
Place the seasoned meat in the crust to assemble the pudding, similar to an apple pudding.
Cook
Tie the pudding in a cloth and place it in boiling water.
Boil for three hours if it is a small pudding.
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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Pepper + beeftop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,971 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Flour + peppertop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together50,459 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + beeftop 25% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together10,677 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and beef barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 10,677 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
What each ingredient does
- Suet
- Shredded suet melts into the crust, adding richness and a tender, flaky texture.
- All-purpose flour
- Flour combined with water and suet forms the stiff dough that structures the crust.
- Beef or mutton steaks
- The meat cooks within the crust, contributing savory flavor and juices to the filling.
The step that matters
Tying the pudding in a cloth. The cloth must be secured snugly so the crust holds its shape and water cannot seep into the filling during the long boil.
“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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