Name: Poached Eggs on Toast
Ingredients: slices of whole-wheat or rye bread; water for boiling; eggs; parsley or cress for garnish

Why it works: Wheat and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 345 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Poached Eggs on Toast

Oven, in the book's wordsA moderate oven

Ingredients

slices of whole-wheat or rye bread
water for boiling
eggs
parsley or cress for garnish

Directions

The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Toast the bread slices in a 350°F (175°C) oven until golden brown.
Dip the hot toast into boiling water for a few seconds, then remove quickly.
Place the toast on a large platter.
Top each slice with one poached egg.
Garnish with parsley or cress and serve hot.

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.

Wheat + parsleytop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together345 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Wheat + eggtop 19% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,225 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Egg + parsleytop 21% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together18,765 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).