Why it works: Pork and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 18,214 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Pork, Loin Of, Stuffed
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderately hot oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Score the skin of the pork in narrow lines.
Make an opening for the stuffing by separating the meat from the bone on the inner side.
Fill the opening with stuffing and secure it.
Wrap the loin in greased paper.
Roast in a moderately hot oven at 350°F (175°C) for about 2 hours.
Baste frequently.
One hour before serving, remove the paper to allow the crackling to brown.
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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Pork + oniontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,214 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Pork + appletop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,581 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).
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Onion + appletop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,206 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Onion + saucetop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together10,474 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Pork + saucetop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,666 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Onion and sauce barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 10,474 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
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pork, onion, sauce):
- Avocadofits better
- Coconutfits about as well
- Mangofits about as well
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pork, onion, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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