Why it works: Butter and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 85,593 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓
Broiled Kidneys
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Preheat the broiler.
Clean the kidneys and remove any membranes.
Cut the kidneys in half lengthwise.
Melt butter in a pan and add salt and pepper.
Cook and serve
Broil the kidneys for about 5 minutes on each side until cooked through.
Serve hot.
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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Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Kidneys
- Form the main body of the dish, becoming tender and savory when cooked through.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, helping the kidneys brown and carry flavor.
The step that matters
Broil until cooked through. Kidneys can turn tough and rubbery if overcooked, and undercooked kidneys are unsafe to eat. Broiling on both sides for about 5 minutes each, checking the centre, helps them cook evenly without drying out.
“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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