Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Macaroni and Cheese
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Parboil the macaroni until soft.
Butter a pudding dish.
Assemble
Layer rolled crackers, macaroni, and grated cheese in the dish.
Repeat the layers, finishing with a top layer of crackers.
Pour cold sweet milk over the dish until full.
Bake and serve
Bake until browned nicely.
Serve hot.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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 + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Butter + cheesetop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,962 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cheese + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,426 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Macaroni
- Forms the bulk of the dish and provides the starchy body that holds the layers together.
- Grated cheese
- Melts into the milk and browns on top, adding richness and savory flavor.
- Rolled crackers
- Toast on the surface and add a crisp, golden crust contrasting with the soft interior.
- Cold sweet milk
- Soaks into the layers and bakes into a creamy, custard-like sauce as it heats.
- Butter
- Adds fat that promotes browning and a rich flavor on the dish and its surfaces.
The step that matters
Pour cold sweet milk over the dish until full. The milk must cover the layers so the macaroni absorbs liquid and the sauce sets evenly during baking. Too little liquid leaves dry, firm pasta, while the cold milk warms gradually in the oven.
“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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