Why it works: Pepper and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,923 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Spanish Steak
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Sear and season
Sear the round steak on both sides in a hot pan.
Season the steak with coarse sea salt, black pepper, and a bit of butter.
Add ½ cup of water or stock to the pan.
Bake and top
Cook the steak in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C) for 30 minutes.
Cover the steak with slices of raw onions and add more butter.
Cook the steak for another 30 minutes.
Layer sliced tomatoes on top of the steak.
Cook the steak for an additional 30 minutes.
Cover the steak with grated cheese.
Bake until the cheese is brown.
Serve
Serve the steak with gravy made from the pan juices.
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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Pepper + tomatotop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Onion + tomatotop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,633 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Butter + cheesetop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,962 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Pepper + oniontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Tomato + cheesetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,896 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Round steak
- Forms the main body of the dish and becomes tender with long, moist cooking.
- Butter
- Adds richness and fat, helping flavor and moisture on the surface of the steak.
- Water or stock
- Creates steam and pan juices that keep the steak moist and form the base for gravy.
- Raw onions
- Soften and turn sweeter as they cook under cover, adding aroma and flavor.
- Tomato
- Adds acidity and juice that blend into the pan liquid as it bakes.
- Grated cheese
- Melts and browns on top, adding savory flavor and a golden crust.
The step that matters
Searing the steak before baking. A hot sear browns the surface through the Maillard reaction, building savory flavor that carries into the pan juices and gravy. Skipping or rushing it leaves the dish flat.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, butter, tomato, cheese):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Onionthe original
- Mustardfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, butter, tomato, cheese. 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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