Name: Ham Sandwiches
Ingredients: lean ham; fat ham; pepper; mustard (optional); 2-3 hard-boiled egg yolks

Why it works: Pepper and mustard are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,430 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Ham Sandwiches

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the filling

Chop the lean and fat ham finely.
Season with pepper and a little mustard if desired.
Mince the yolks of 2-3 hard-boiled eggs and mix them with the meat.

Assemble and serve

Spread the mixture between slices of buttered bread.
Cut into desired shapes and serve.

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.

Pepper + mustardtop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together15,430 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ham + mustardtop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together747 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).
Ham + eggtop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together4,526 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ham + peppertop 23% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together6,058 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Mustard + eggtop 28% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together9,210 recipes

Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).

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

What each ingredient does

Lean ham: Provides the main meaty body and savoury flavour of the filling.
Fat ham: Adds richness and moisture so the chopped filling stays soft and spreadable.
Hard-boiled egg yolks: Add creamy richness and help bind the chopped meat into a spreadable mixture.
Mustard: Adds sharp acidity and heat that cut through the richness of the ham and yolks.