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 ↓
Shred Codfish
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fish
Flake the codfish very fine.
Wash the fish in two waters and squeeze tightly.
Make the dish
In a saucepan, combine the fish, butter, and flour. Mix thoroughly, then slowly add boiling water until combined.
Bring to a boil and serve.
If desired, stir in a beaten egg just before serving.
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).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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
- Codfish
- Forms the main body of the dish and provides its flavor.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, carrying flavor and softening the texture.
- Flour
- Thickens the liquid as it heats, giving the mixture a smooth, cohesive body.
- Egg
- Enriches the mixture and adds body when stirred in just before serving.
The step that matters
Adding the boiling water. Flour thickens only when starch granules are fully dispersed and heated. Mixing thoroughly with the butter and flour first, then adding water slowly, prevents lumps and a thin or uneven texture.
“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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