Why it works: Thyme and marjoram match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,225 recipes. Both carry terpineol, which smells pine, woody. The science ↓
Roast Veal
Ingredients
Directions
Roast the veal
Keep the veal at a distance from the fire at first.
Baste the shoulder well until nearly done.
Dredge with flour and baste with a little butter.
Stuff and serve
Stuff the veal with a mixture of herbs, lemon peel, spices, bread crumbs, eggs, and suet.
Lay the stuffing in the udder and any remaining in holes in the meat.
Serve with melted butter and garnish with sliced lemon peel.
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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Thyme + marjoramtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,225 recipes
Shared aroma: terpineol (pine, woody).
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Thyme + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,057 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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Marjoram + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,979 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Marjoram + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together957 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Veal shoulder
- Forms the main body of the roast, providing the meat that is cooked and served.
- Eggs
- Bind the stuffing together so it holds its shape when sliced.
- Bread crumbs
- Absorb moisture and add body to the stuffing.
- Marrow suet
- Adds fat that keeps the stuffing moist and rich during roasting.
- Flour
- Dusted on the surface, it helps the outside take on color as it roasts.
- Butter
- Basting fat that promotes browning and adds flavor to the surface.
The step that matters
Keep the veal at a distance from the fire at first. Starting farther from the heat lets the thick joint cook through gently, so the outside does not scorch before the center is done.
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (veal, flour, butter, thyme, marjoram, parsley, lemon):
- Sagefits better
- Winter savoryfits better
- Tarragonfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against veal, flour, butter, thyme, marjoram, parsley, lemon. 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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