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 ↓
Mutton Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare
Cut the loin of mutton into chops and remove the bones.
Layer slices of peeled potatoes and onions on the chops.
Place the remaining chops on top and cover with puff pastry.
Bake and serve
Bake at 400°F (200°C) until golden brown.
Serve with cullis poured over the top.
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.
-
Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Mutton + oniontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,531 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Mutton + potatotop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together293 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Loin of mutton
- Provides the meat, which becomes tender and savoury as it cooks under the pastry.
- Peeled potatoes
- Add starch and body, soaking up juices and making the filling substantial.
- Onions
- Add sweetness and aroma as they soften and mellow during baking.
- Puff pastry
- Forms a crisp, flaky, golden crust that encloses the filling.
- Cullis
- Adds rich, concentrated meaty flavour and moisture when poured over the finished pie.
Swap the potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (mutton, onion):
- Leekfits about as well
- Potatothe original
- Turnipfits less well
- Chivefits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against mutton, onion. 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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