Name: Mutton Chops, B to 1 Led
Ingredients: loin of mutton; coarse sea salt; black pepper; butter

Why it works: Mutton and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,442 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓

Mutton Chops, B to 1 Led

Ingredients

loin of mutton
coarse sea salt
black pepper
butter

Directions

Hang the loin of mutton for two weeks in winter if possible.
Cut the chops into ¾ inch thick pieces.
Season with coarse sea salt and black pepper.
Broil over a clear fire, turning frequently, for about 8 minutes.
Serve each chop on a very hot plate with a hot cover and a small piece of butter on top.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Mutton + peppertop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together5,442 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Mutton + buttertop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,781 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Pepper + buttertop 21% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together85,593 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).