Why it works: Parsley and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Boiled Fish
Ingredients
Directions
Poach the fish
In a pot, combine 1 tablespoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, and 1 quart of water.
Bring the water to a boil.
Add the fish, which should be sewn in a muslin cloth, to the boiling water.
Reduce heat and let it simmer for 10 minutes per pound after the water begins to simmer.
Serve
Once done, place the fish on a platter and garnish with parsley, lemon quarters, and slices of hard boiled egg.
Serve with cream sauce.
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.
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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Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Cream + saucetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,787 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Fish + lemontop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,889 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Vinegar + parsleytop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,477 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Fish + parsleytop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,341 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Fish
- Is the main protein that gently cooks and firms as it poaches.
- Vinegar
- Adds a mild acidity to the poaching liquid, brightening the flavour of the fish.
The step that matters
Simmer, do not boil hard. Once the water has begun to simmer, keeping it gently at a simmer rather than a rolling boil cooks the fish evenly and helps it stay tender and moist instead of turning dry and tough.
“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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