Why it works: Butter and milk 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 ↓
Chicken Bisque
Ingredients
Directions
Make the bisque
Cook 2 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan.
Add 2 tablespoons of flour and stir until blended.
Gradually pour in 3 cups of chicken stock and 1 cup of rich milk.
When the mixture begins to thicken, add 1 cup of ground cooked chicken and cook until it thickens to the proper consistency.
Season with salt and pepper.
Serve
Put three tablespoons of well-whipped cream in the bottom of a bowl and pour the bisque onto it.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 7 of 8 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Chicken | 100g cooked | 165 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Sauce | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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. See the original page.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Sauce + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,787 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Chicken + milktop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,389 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-hexanal (fruit).
Butter and flour 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
- Butter
- Enriches the flavour and helps form the roux base with the flour.
- Flour
- Thickens the stock and milk into a smooth, cohesive base.
- Chicken stock
- Provides the liquid body and savoury flavour of the bisque.
- Rich milk
- Adds creaminess and body to the thickened liquid.
- Ground cooked chicken
- Gives the bisque its main meat flavour and body.
- Cream
- Adds richness and a light, airy texture when whipped and placed beneath the bisque.
The step that matters
Thickening the bisque to the proper consistency. Flour must be cooked smoothly into the liquid and simmered long enough to lose its raw taste and reach full thickness. Adding liquid too fast can cause lumps, and stopping too early leaves the bisque thin and floury.
“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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