Why it works: Beef and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 18,971 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Another Stock
Ingredients
Directions
Make the stock
Combine the beef and water in a large pot.
Bring the mixture slowly to a boil, skimming off any foam.
Add a little salt, reduce heat, and simmer gently for 6 to 7 hours, until the meat falls apart.
Add pepper.
Strain and skim
Strain the stock.
Let it cool.
Remove all the grease from the surface.
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.
-
Beef + peppertop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,971 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
- Lean beef
- Releases gelatin and flavour into the water during long simmering, giving body to the stock.
- Water
- Extracts flavour and collagen from the beef as the mixture simmers.
The step that matters
Bring the mixture slowly to a boil, skimming off any foam. Foam contains coagulated proteins and impurities that can cloud the stock and taste bitter if left in. Heating gradually and skimming early keeps the stock clear and clean-flavoured.
“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 beef stock recipes
You might also like
Roast Beef211 recipes
Beef Loaf175 recipes
Corned Beef87 recipes
Beef Broth67 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.