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 Kidneys En Brochette an Petit Sale
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Split the mutton kidneys in half without separating the parts and remove the skin.
Season the kidneys with salt, pepper, and sweet oil, then roll them well.
Skewer two kidneys together in the center and repeat for the others.
Cook and serve
Broil the skewers for 4 minutes on each side.
Arrange on a hot dish, pour the maitre d’hôtel butter over, and cover with broiled bacon.
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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Mutton + peppertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,442 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Mutton + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,781 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Pepper + buttertop 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
- Mutton kidneys
- Form the main meat, which turns tender and juicy when broiled briefly over high heat.
- Maitre d’hôtel butter
- Adds richness and moisture as it melts over the hot kidneys.
- Broiled bacon
- Adds fat and savory flavor as it crisps and drips over the kidneys.
The step that matters
Broil the skewers for 4 minutes on each side. Kidneys turn tough and rubbery if overcooked, so the heat should be high and the time kept short. Leaving them too long dries out the meat and loses its tenderness.
“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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