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 ↓
Gravy for Boiled or Baked Fish
Ingredients
Directions
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
Mix in the flour until thoroughly combined.
Gradually add the boiling water, stirring constantly.
Cook for three minutes before adding the pulverized egg yolks.
If you prefer a darker gravy, scorch the flour before adding the water.
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
- Butter
- Provides fat that carries flavour and helps form the roux base.
- Flour
- Thickens the liquid into a smooth gravy as it cooks with the fat.
- Hard-boiled egg yolks
- Add richness and a creamy body to the gravy.
The step that matters
Gradually add the boiling water, stirring constantly. Adding liquid slowly while stirring keeps the flour dispersed, so lumps do not form. Constant stirring lets starch granules swell evenly as the mixture heats, giving a smooth, thickened gravy.
“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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