Name: Lobster Croquettes
Ingredients: one cup lobster meat mashed fine; one cup mashed potato; two cups of boiled lobster hashed fine; three tablespoons of flour; one tablespoon chopped parsley; one tablespoon but- ter; one cup cream; one pint of cold boiled macaroni; one pint hot cream; two tablespoons butter; half teaspoon salt; half teaspoon white pepper; half teaspoon celery salt; half teaspoon cayenne pepper; one pound cold meat; two ounces of drippings in a stew-pan; one cup rolled cracker crumbs; half cup melted butter; one tablespoonful butter; one tablespoonful flour; one cup chopped roast beef; one cup cold boiled rice; one cup milk; one tablespoon butter; a gill of cream; a dash of cayenne; two eggs beaten light; two eggs; one egg; two table- spoons of grated cheese

Why it works: Potato and parsley are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,855 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓

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.

Potato + parsleytop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,855 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Lobster + creamtop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,050 recipes

Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together41,516 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together124,287 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour + parsleytop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together16,675 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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

Lobster meat: Forms the main flavour and bulk of the croquette filling.
Mashed potato: Adds body and moisture so the mixture holds its shape.
Eggs: Bind the mixture and form a coating that sets when fried.
Butter: Adds richness and moisture to the filling.
Cracker crumbs: Form a crisp, golden outer crust when fried.

The step that matters

Fry in hot lard. If the fat is not hot enough, the croquettes absorb oil and turn greasy and may fall apart. Hot fat quickly sets the egg and crumb coating into a crisp shell that holds the filling inside.

Swap the white pepper

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lobster, meat, potato, flour, parsley, cream, butter):

Capersfits better
Nutmegfits better
Tarragonfits better
White pepperthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against lobster, meat, potato, flour, parsley, cream, butter. 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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Beef	100g cooked	250
Rice	1 cup cooked (158g) white	206
Mashed Potato	1 medium (173g) baked	161
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Cheese	1 oz (28g) cheddar	113
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Shrimp	100g cooked	99
Crab	100g cooked	97
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Cracker	5 saltine crackers (15g)	66
Cream	1 tbsp (15ml) heavy	51
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Nutmeg	1 tsp ground (2.2g)	12
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Cayenne	1 tsp (1.8g)	6
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Meat	not in our table	0
Macaroni	not in our table	0
Dripping	not in our table	0

Lobster Croquettes