Why it works: Butter and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,227 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓
How We Cook in Tennessee
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the grits and rice
Cook the grits.
Season with butter, salt, and milk, and two eggs beaten very light.
Bake in a buttered dish.
Cook rice so that the grains will stand apart.
Use rice that has been left over.
Mix with two well beaten eggs.
Make into balls or pear shaped.
Let stand awhile.
Fry and assemble
Slice and dip the slices in a batter of flour and egg, or in dry meal.
Fry in hot lard.
While hot, put a generous tablespoon on individual plates.
Open a can of large yellow California peaches.
Lay half a peach in center of each plate.
Garnish dish with parsley.
Make the sauce
Rub together thoroughly one tablespoon butter with one cup powdered sugar.
Add yolks four eggs beaten very light, and juice of one lemon.
Beat briskly several minutes and then add glass of wine, stirring hard all the time.
Set bowl containing this in saucepan of boiling water and stir till it becomes heated, being careful that it does not boil.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 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.
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.
-
Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,227 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
-
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Egg + lemontop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together44,316 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
Egg and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 44,316 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
- Eggs
- Bind the mixture and set when heated, giving structure and richness to the dish.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, carrying flavor and a smooth texture.
- Lemon
- Adds acidity that brightens the sweet sauce.
The step that matters
Set bowl containing this in saucepan of boiling water and stir till it becomes heated, being careful that it does not boil.. Eggs thicken gently at moderate heat; if the mixture boils, the egg proteins can curdle and the sauce turns grainy instead of smooth.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, egg):
- Lemonthe original
- Vanillafits about as well
- Coconutfits about as well
- Raspberryfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, egg. 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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