Why it works: Lemon and mint are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,998 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Roast Lamb
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the lamb
Remove the scrag from the forequarter of lamb and cut off the shoulder joint.
Saw off the chine bone and the breast bone, then crack the ribs in the middle.
Cut off the thick skin covering the lower part of the breast and break the shoulder bone to allow the knuckle to twist.
Secure the knuckle in place with a skewer from beneath the breast to the knuckle.
Insert two large skewers at the thin end and pass the spit between the skewers and the ribs through the thick part at the shoulder.
Roast and baste
Place the meat before a clear, brisk fire, but not too close at first.
Add a little water to the dripping pan and baste with it until the meat begins to cook, adding a little fresh butter.
Move the meat closer to the fire and baste frequently with gravy when more than half done.
Roast until thoroughly cooked and browned, about 2 hours for the forequarter.
Finish and serve
Before serving, sprinkle the meat with lemon juice and serve with mint sauce.
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 + minttop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,998 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Lamb + minttop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together772 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Butter + saucetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together15,338 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,227 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
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Lamb + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,232 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Butter and sauce barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 15,338 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Forequarter of lamb
- Is the main cut of meat, providing the body of the dish and its rich flavour as it roasts.
- Fresh butter
- Adds fat and richness to the basting liquid, supporting browning and a savoury flavour on the surface.
- Lemon juice
- Adds acidity at the end, brightening the rich flavour of the roasted lamb.
The step that matters
Basting with water and butter at the start. Adding water to the dripping pan keeps the drippings from scorching while the meat begins to cook, and the butter helps the surface brown. Basting too little or too late can leave the meat dry.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lamb, butter, mint, sauce):
- Lemonthe original
- Limefits about as well
- Coconutfits less well
- Mangofits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against lamb, butter, mint, sauce. 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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