Why it works: Mutton and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,442 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓
Rolled Mutton
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Carefully remove the bone from the shoulder of mutton without damaging the skin.
Mince the meat very finely.
Season the minced meat with pepper, coarse sea salt, and sweet herbs.
Roll the seasoned meat tightly in the skin and tie it securely.
Bake and serve
Place in a dripping pan with a little water and bake at 350°F (175°C) for 2 to 3 hours.
Serve with gravy.
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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Mutton + peppertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together5,442 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Mutton shoulder
- Provides the main meat and fat that give the roast its flavor and juiciness.
- Sweet herbs
- Add aromatic flavor that permeates the minced meat as it cooks.
- Coarse sea salt
- Seasons the meat and helps draw out flavor from within the mince.
The step that matters
Rolling and tying the meat. The meat must be rolled tightly and tied securely so it holds a compact shape while baking. A loose roll can open up, letting the filling spill out and cook unevenly.
“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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