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Mutton Steaks

Mutton steaks are broiled, seasoned, buttered, and served hot.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Onion and cucumber match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,050 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Mutton Steaks

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Cut mutton steaks from a loin or neck that has hung.

Cook and serve

  1. Broil the steaks on a clear fire.

  2. Season with salt and pepper when half done, then turn them.

  3. Transfer to a hot dish and rub butter on each steak.

  4. Serve immediately while hot.

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.

  1. Onion + cucumbertop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together6,050 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  2. Vinegar + cucumbertop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,734 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-methylbutyl acetate (fruit).

  3. Pepper + oniontop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together68,474 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  4. Pepper + cucumbertop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together5,991 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  5. Onion + vinegartop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together18,226 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

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

What each ingredient does

Mutton steaks
Form the main body of the dish, cooked by direct heat to a browned, tender result.
Butter
Adds richness and a glossy finish when rubbed onto the hot steaks.

The step that matters

Season with salt and pepper when half done, then turn them. Salt added partway through broiling seasons the surface as it browns. Turning only once lets the second side cook evenly without drying the meat.

Swap the cucumber

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (mutton, butter, pepper, onion, vinegar):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Potatofits better
  3. Shallotfits about as well
  4. Cucumberthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against mutton, butter, pepper, onion, vinegar. 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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