Why it works: Parsley and thyme match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and 9,057 recipes mention both. Both carry cuminaldehyde, which smells Spicy, cumin. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: egg, milk, wheat, fish (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Also mentioned in the method: cod
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare the cod
Make a forcemeat by mixing bread crumbs, egg, parsley, thyme, bacon or ham, salt, and pepper.
Remove the bone from a middle piece of cod.
Insert the stuffing into the cod.
Rub the outside of the cod with butter or dripping.
Sew up each end of the cod.
Bake
Place the cod in a baking dish with cold water.
Add pats of butter on top.
Sprinkle with minced parsley.
Cover with buttered paper.
Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes.
Sauce and serve
Make a thick white sauce using the cooking stock.
Pour the sauce around the cod, not over it.
Garnish with fried tomatoes and parsley.
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.
-
Parsley + thymetop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together9,057 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
-
Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together34,118 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Thyme + peppertop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together11,585 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Bread + buttertop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together27,145 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Thyme + tomatotop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together2,370 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Bread crumbs
- Bind the forcemeat and give the stuffing body while absorbing moisture.
- Egg
- Binds the stuffing so it holds together when sliced and served.
- Bacon or ham
- Adds savory, fatty flavor to the stuffing as it cooks.
- Cod (in the method)
- Lean white fish that becomes flaky and delicate when baked.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness to the fish and the sauce.
The step that matters
Bake the cod covered in cold water. Starting the fish in cold water and covering it with buttered paper lets it heat gently, so the lean flesh stays moist and tender rather than drying out in the oven.
Flavor stand-ins for the tomato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (bread, egg, parsley, thyme, ham, pepper, butter):
- Carrotabout as good a flavor fit
- Potatoabout as good a flavor fit
- Capsicumabout as good a flavor fit
- Tomatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against bread, egg, parsley, thyme, ham, pepper, butter. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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.