Why it works: Pepper and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,451 recipes. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. The science ↓
Stewed Veal
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Cut the veal into neat pieces and roll them in flour, pepper, and salt.
Brown
Fry the onion in a little bacon fat until slightly brown.
Add the veal to the pan and brown it quickly.
Stew and serve
Pour in the stock, add the spices and herbs.
Cook slowly for two hours.
Serve with peas and mashed potatoes.
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.
-
Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together17,451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
-
Pepper + oniontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Onion + clovetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together16,901 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
-
Flour + clovetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,671 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Veal + oniontop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,841 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Veal cutlets
- Provide the main meat, which becomes tender during slow cooking.
- Flour
- Coats the veal, helping it brown and thickening the cooking liquid slightly.
- Onion
- Adds savory sweetness as it browns in the fat.
- White stock
- Provides the liquid that gently cooks the veal and carries flavour.
The step that matters
Cook slowly for two hours. Gentle, low-heat simmering breaks down the connective tissue in veal, so it becomes tender rather than tough. Boiling hard can toughen the meat and make the liquid cloudy.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (veal, flour, pepper, clove):
- Carrotfits better
- Shallotfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against veal, flour, pepper, clove. 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.
More stewed veal recipes
You might also like
Veal Patties50 recipes
Beef, Mutton, or Veal Broth6 recipes
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.