Name: Ribs of Lamb with Mint Sauce
Ingredients: 7 lbs ribs of lamb; mint sauce; peas; potatoes

Why it works: Mint and peas are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,137 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-ol, which smells mushroom, earthy. The science ↓

Ribs of Lamb with Mint Sauce

Ingredients

7 lbs ribs of lamb
mint sauce
peas
potatoes

Directions

The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.

Prepare

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Season the ribs of lamb with salt and pepper.

Roast and serve

Roast the lamb in the oven for about 1.5 to 2 hours, or until cooked to your liking.
Prepare the mint sauce by mixing fresh mint with vinegar and sugar.
Serve the lamb with mint sauce, peas, and boiled potatoes.

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.

Mint + peastop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,137 recipes

Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
Peas + potatotop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,016 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
Lamb + potatotop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together520 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
Lamb + minttop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together772 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Lamb + peastop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together650 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Lamb ribs: Provide the main protein, whose fat renders and keeps the meat juicy as it roasts.
Mint sauce: Adds bright acidity and sweetness to balance the rich, fatty lamb.
Peas: Add mild sweetness and a soft texture alongside the rich lamb.
Potatoes: Add starch that soaks up meat juices and gives a filling side.