Why it works: Ham and beef are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,729 recipes. Both carry 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline, which smells popcorn, roasted. The science ↓
Aspic Jelly
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare and simmer
Place the chopped calves' feet in a stewpan.
Add the slices of ham or bacon, remains of game or poultry, trimmings of cutlets or chops, and odd bits of uncooked beef or mutton.
Cover with water and bring to a boil.
Simmer until the gelatin is extracted from the calves' feet.
Strain, set and serve
Strain the liquid and season with spices and colorant to achieve a savory flavor and brown color.
Pour into a mold and let it set in the refrigerator.
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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Ham + beeftop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,729 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Calves' feet
- Supply collagen that dissolves into gelatin, which lets the liquid set into a firm jelly.
- Ham or bacon
- Adds savory, smoky depth to the stock as it simmers.
- Game or poultry remains
- Contribute meaty flavor and richness to the stock.
- Beef or mutton
- Adds meaty body and savoury flavor to the stock.
The step that matters
Simmer until the gelatin is extracted. Gentle simmering draws collagen out of the calves' feet slowly. A hard boil can cloud the liquid, and too little time leaves it too weak to set firmly when chilled.
“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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