Why it works: Butter and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
To Melt Butter
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Rub the flour and salt into the butter.
Add the water and mix well.
Melt the butter
Set the vessel in a pot of boiling water.
Shake until the butter begins to boil.
Do not place the pan directly on the fire.
If using herbs, add a little more water.
Boil parsley for a few minutes, drain, mince, and stir into the butter when it starts to thicken.
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 + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 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
- Butter
- Provides the fat and rich flavor that forms the base of the dish.
- Flour
- Thickens the butter as it heats and helps it hold together.
The step that matters
Do not place the pan directly on the fire. Direct heat can scorch the butter or cause it to separate. Setting the vessel in boiling water heats it gently and evenly, keeping the butter smooth.
“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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