Why it works: Lemon and celery match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,467 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Steamed Fish
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fish
Only use very delicate fish for invalids — whiting or sole.
If the fish is not prepared, clean it very carefully, and remove the skin and wash it before using it.
Butter 2 dinner plates all over.
Put the whiting or the fillets of sole on one plate.
Cover it over with the other plate.
Steam and serve
Put them over a saucepan of boiling water for 20 minutes.
A little white sauce made with cornflour, and nicely flavoured, may accompany above.
The onion and celery can be omitted if not approved.
Make the calf's foot stock
Clean the calf's foot well.
Bake or stew it for 3 or 4 hours in the milk and water, with all the other ingredients named except the cream.
The cream should be stirred in just before serving.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 5 of 6 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Celery | 1 stalk (40g) | 6 |
| Mace | 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.
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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Lemon + celerytop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together3,467 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Onion + celerytop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,518 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,053 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Mace + oniontop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together7,078 recipes
Shared aroma: eugenol (clove, spicy).
-
Mace + celerytop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,769 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Whiting or sole (in the method)
- Delicate white flesh that cooks gently and flakes when steamed.
- Milk
- Adds richness and a mild, creamy body to the liquid.
- Cream
- Adds fat and smoothness, stirred in at the end for a silky finish.
- Calf's foot
- Releases gelatin during long slow cooking, giving the liquid body.
The step that matters
Steaming the fish for 20 minutes. Delicate fish is easily overcooked and turns dry or tough. Steaming gently between plates over boiling water cooks it evenly while keeping its moisture, so it should be checked as it flakes.
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, lemon, onion, celery, cream):
- Parsleyfits better
- Thymefits better
- Tarragonfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, lemon, onion, celery, cream. 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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