Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Cheese Eokdue
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the base
In a small saucepan, melt the butter and flour over medium heat until bubbling.
Add the milk or cream and stir until smooth to create a thick white sauce.
Mix in the grated cheese, salt, and cayenne until well combined.
Remove from heat and stir in the beaten egg yolks.
Whip and bake
Whisk the egg whites until stiff and gently fold them into the mixture.
Butter a baking dish and pour in the mixture, filling it halfway.
Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) until golden brown.
Serve immediately, as it will fall if left too long.
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Butter + cheesetop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,962 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Milk + cheesetop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,426 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Egg whites
- Whisked stiff, they trap air that makes the soufflé rise and gives it a light texture.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and help set the base as it cooks.
- Flour
- Thickens the butter into a roux that gives the base body.
- Butter
- Forms the roux with flour and adds richness to the base.
- Milk or cream
- Makes the thick white sauce that carries the cheese and the whites.
- Cheese
- Adds savory flavor and richness to the base.
The step that matters
Folding in the egg whites. Whites must be whisked stiff but folded gently, so the air bubbles stay intact. Deflating them through overmixing or stirring leaves the soufflé flat and dense.
“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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