Why it works: Egg and butter match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and 118,511 recipes mention both. Both carry nonanal, which smells fat, citrus. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: egg, milk (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the eggs
Poach the eggs or boil them in the shell for 5 minutes until solid enough to peel.
Make the sauce
In a saucepan, melt the butter and add the milk to make a thick cream sauce.
Bring the sauce to a boil for a few minutes, then stir in the Parmesan cheese and a small piece of butter.
Season the sauce with salt and paprika, stirring until well melted.
Bake and serve
Place the eggs in a flat baking dish, pour the sauce over them, and sprinkle with a little grated cheese.
Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven for about 2 minutes until golden.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
-
Egg + buttertop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together118,511 recipes
Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).
-
Butter + milktop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together81,222 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Butter + parmesan cheesetop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together4,158 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Milk + parmesan cheesetop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,607 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
-
Egg + milktop 9% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together88,465 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Provide the main body of the dish and set firm when cooked.
- Butter
- Enriches the sauce and carries flavour into the roux base.
- Rich milk
- Forms the liquid base of the thick cream sauce with butter.
- Parmesan cheese
- Melts into the sauce, adding savoury depth and browning on top.
The step that matters
Thickening the sauce. Bring the butter and milk mixture to a boil so the starch thickens fully; a sauce that is too thin will run off the eggs and not cling to them.
“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.
You might also like
Illustration
Illustration
Illustration
IllustrationThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.