Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Salmon Loaf
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Preheat a steamer.
In a bowl, combine the salmon, cracker crumbs, eggs, milk, red pepper, salt, and butter, and mix well until combined.
Steam and serve
Pour the mixture into a long tin if serving cold.
Steam for 1 hour.
Serve with milk sauce, hot or cold.
If served cold, cut into thin slices.
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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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Coffee + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,202 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).
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Salmon + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,481 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
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Salmon + eggtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,485 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Salmon + milktop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,577 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Salmon
- Forms the main body of the loaf and gives it its flavour.
- Eggs
- Bind the mixture and set as it heats, holding the loaf together.
- Cracker crumbs
- Absorb liquid and add body, helping the loaf hold its shape.
- Milk
- Adds moisture, keeping the loaf tender rather than dry.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a softer, more tender texture.
The step that matters
Steam for the full hour. The eggs set gradually as the loaf heats, so the centre must reach a steady heat for the full hour. Steady steam heats evenly, so the loaf cooks through and holds its shape when sliced cold.
“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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