Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and 81,283 recipes mention both. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Parker House Rolls
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.
Prepare the dough
Place 1 quart of flour in a bread pan.
Create a well in the center of the flour.
Add 4 tablespoons of sugar, a little salt, and 1 cup of yeast into the well.
Scald 1 quart of milk and let it cool until warm, then pour it into the pan.
Set the pan in a warm place until the mixture is foamy with bubbles.
Add enough flour to the dough to knead it without sticking.
Knead the dough longer if time allows.
Let the dough rise until light and fluffy.
Knead the dough again.
Shape the rolls
Roll out the dough to half the thickness of biscuits.
Cut the dough with a biscuit cutter.
Fold each piece over to form a half circle.
Brush the outside of each roll with melted butter.
Place the rolls in rows in baking pans.
Rise and bake
Let the rolls sit in a cool place for 30 minutes.
Move the pans to a warm area.
Let the rolls rise quickly.
Bake in a quick oven at 400°F (200°C) 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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Flour and butter share little aroma chemistry, yet 124,287 recipes mention both: they likely 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
- Flour
- Forms the gluten network that gives the dough its structure and chew.
- Yeast
- Produces carbon dioxide gas as it ferments, which makes the rolls rise and turn light.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and richness to the dough and softens its texture.
- Sugar
- Feeds the yeast and adds sweetness and browning in the oven.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a soft crust and rich flavor on the brushed surface.
The step that matters
Let the dough rise until light and fluffy. Yeast gas must be trapped by the gluten network to lift the dough; under-proofing leaves dense rolls, while the warm rise activates the yeast.
“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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