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The Court-bouillons and the Marinades

A flavored stock made from water, vinegar or wine, vegetables, and seasonings, used for poaching fish.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Auguste Escoffier · From a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg) · 15 ingredients
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Why it works: White wine and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,832 recipes. Both carry myrcene, which smells balsamic, herbaceous. The science ↓

The Court-bouillons and the Marinades

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the court-bouillon

  1. Put into a saucepan the water, salt, and vinegar, the minced carrots and onions, and the parsley, thyme, and bay, gathered into a bunch.

  2. Boil, allow to simmer for one hour, rub through tammy, and put aside until wanted.

  3. Put the peppercorns into the court-bouillon only twelve minutes before straining the latter.

  4. Boil the mixture for half an hour and strain through tammy.

  5. Replace the white wine with excellent red wine.

  6. Add four oz. of minced carrots.

  7. Apportion the wine and water in the ratio of two-thirds to one-third.

  8. Boil the mixture for the same time as the former.

Cook the fish

  1. Immerse the fish while the liquor is cold.

  2. Very slowly bring the liquor to a boil.

  3. As soon as the boil is reached, move the receptacle to the side of the fire, where the cooking of the fish is completed.

Make the flour thickening

  1. Gradually mix the flour and the water.

  2. Set to boil, and stir the mixture while it is boiling to prevent the flour from precipitating.

  3. Add the salt and the lemon juice, and pass through a strainer.

  4. As soon as the boil is reached, immerse the objects to be treated.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

189Calories
8 gProtein
8 gFat
17 gCarbs

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
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By Auguste Escoffier. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg).

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.

  1. White wine + lemontop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,832 recipes

    Shared aroma: myrcene (balsamic, herbaceous).

  2. Vinegar + white winetop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,776 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  3. Milk + lemontop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together19,053 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  4. White wine + milktop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together929 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity).

  5. Vinegar + lemontop 20% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together7,334 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Vinegar
Adds acidity that helps firm the fish and gives the bouillon its sharp flavour.
White wine
Adds acidity and aroma to the liquor, flavouring the fish as it cooks.
Carrots (in the method)
Add sweetness and aroma to the liquor as they simmer.
Lemon juice
Adds acidity and brightness to the finished liquor.

The step that matters

Immerse the fish while the liquor is cold, then bring it up slowly. Starting cold and heating gently lets the fish cook evenly and stay firm, while a sudden hard boil can break up the flesh and toughen the outside.

Swap the lemon

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, white wine, milk):

  1. Strawberryfits better
  2. Plumfits better
  3. Grapefits better
  4. Lemonthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, white wine, milk. 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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