Why it works: Potato and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Pork Mould
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the filling
Remove the skin and most of the fat from the pork and chop it finely.
Add the onion and mashed potato to the pork.
Season with salt and pepper, then mix in enough sour cream or milk to bind the mixture.
Bake the mould
Coat a well-greased mould or pie dish with brown bread crumbs.
Press the mixture into the mould and bake for about 30 minutes at 350°F (175°C).
Alternative and serving
Alternatively, form the mixture into small cakes, coat with egg and breadcrumbs, and fry.
Serve the gravy made from the bones and trimmings separately.
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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Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Pork + potatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,668 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
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Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Pork + oniontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,214 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cold roast pork
- Forms the meat base that gives the mould its body and bulk.
- Mashed potato
- Its starch helps the mixture bind and stay moist and tender.
- Sour cream or milk
- Adds moisture and fat so the mixture binds and stays tender.
- Onion
- Adds savoury aroma and flavour throughout the mixture.
- Brown bread crumbs
- Coat the mould and brown on the outside as it bakes.
The step that matters
Binding the mixture with sour cream or milk. Add just enough liquid to bind the mixture. Too little and it crumbles when pressed or fried; too much makes it wet and loose, so it will not hold its shape.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pork, potato, cream, pepper, bread):
- Capsicumfits about as well
- Onionthe original
- Tomatofits about as well
- Spinachfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against pork, potato, cream, pepper, bread. 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.
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