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 ↓
Tripe with Oysters
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the tripe
Cut the tripe into pieces.
Simmer the tripe in salted water for 45 minutes.
Remove the tripe and set aside.
Finish the dish
Add butter and flour to the broth, stirring until thickened.
Return the tripe and add the oysters.
Simmer for a few more minutes and serve.
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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Butter + oystertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,184 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
-
Flour + peppertop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together50,459 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Pepper + oystertop 22% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together7,663 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, 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
- Tripe
- Provides the main body and chewy texture after long simmering.
- Butter
- Adds richness and fat that give the broth a smooth, rounded flavor.
- Flour
- Thickens the broth into a light sauce when stirred in with the butter.
- Oysters
- Add a briny, savory flavor and a soft texture to the finished dish.
The step that matters
Adding the oysters. Oysters toughen and turn rubbery when exposed to prolonged heat. Adding them near the end and simmering only briefly keeps them tender and plump.
“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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