Why it works: Lemon and orange match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,634 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓
Superlative Mincemeat
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a fierce oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the mincemeat
Boil the lemons until tender, then chop them small, removing all the seeds.
Combine the chopped lemons with the other prepared ingredients in a large bowl.
Mix in 3 to 4 cups of brandy and adjust salt and spices to taste.
Make and bake the pies
For the pies, butter some tin pattypans and line them with thin puff pastry.
Fill the pastry with the mincemeat mixture and moisten the edges of the covers.
Close the pies carefully, trim excess pastry, and make a small hole in the center of each crust.
Optionally, ice the pies with cold water and sifted sugar.
Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) for 30 minutes, covering with paper if they brown too quickly.
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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Lemon + orangetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together10,634 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
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Currant + brandytop 7% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Raisin + curranttop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,180 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, creamy).
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Raisin + brandytop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,768 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Raisin + orangetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,684 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Golden pippins
- Apples add bulk and a tart, juicy body that holds the filling together.
- Suet
- Fat that melts during baking, adding richness and a moist texture to the filling.
- Pounded sugar
- Sweetness that balances the sharp lemon and helps preserve the mixture.
- Brandy
- Adds aroma and acts as a preservative, helping the mincemeat keep well.
- Raisins
- Provide chewy sweetness and concentrated fruit flavour throughout the filling.
The step that matters
Close the pies carefully and make the vent hole. Sealing the edges firmly stops the filling leaking during baking, and the small hole lets steam escape so the pastry does not burst or turn soggy.
Swap the currant
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lemon, raisin, orange, sugar, brandy):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Apricotfits better
- Currantthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against lemon, raisin, orange, sugar, brandy. 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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