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 ↓
Rice Omelet
Ingredients
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 batter
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter.
In a bowl, mix the melted butter with 1 cup of milk, 1 cup of cold boiled rice, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 3 beaten eggs.
Cook and serve
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a hot frying pan.
Pour the mixture into the pan and bake in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C) until cooked.
Fold the omelet in half, turn it out onto a hot dish, and serve immediately.
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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Milk + ricetop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,374 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Butter + ricetop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,645 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 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
- Set when heated, giving the omelet its structure and holding the rice together.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and softness, keeping the set eggs tender rather than dry.
- Cold boiled rice
- Provides the bulk and body of the omelet, filling it out between the egg layers.
- Butter
- Adds richness and flavor, and helps the omelet brown and release from the pan.
The step that matters
Baking until cooked. Egg proteins set at moderate heat but turn tough, rubbery and dry if overcooked in a hot oven. Checking early keeps the omelet moist and tender.
“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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