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Stewed Oystees

Stewed oysters are cooked in butter, cornstarch, cream or milk, seasoned with sea salt.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Butter and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓

Stewed Oystees

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Wash and drain the oysters if they are in the shell.

  2. In a bowl, mix the butter and cornstarch.

Cook

  1. Put the mixture with the oysters in a porcelain kettle.

  2. Stir until the mixture boils.

  3. Add the cream or milk and salt to taste.

  4. Do not use the liquor from the oysters.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together41,516 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

  2. Butter + oystertop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together8,184 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).

  3. Cream + oystertop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,886 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Oysters
Provide the main flavour and a tender texture when gently cooked in the sauce.
Butter
Adds richness and a smooth, silky mouthfeel to the stew.
Cornstarch
Thickens the liquid as its starch swells and sets when heated.
Cream or milk
Adds body, richness and a mild creamy sweetness to the stew.

The step that matters

Stir until the mixture boils. Cornstarch only thickens fully once it reaches a boil, and constant stirring keeps it smooth and stops it from scorching or forming lumps on the base of the kettle.

“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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