Why it works: Egg and anchovy match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and 2,268 recipes mention both. Both carry 1-octen-3-ol, which smells mushroom, earthy. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: egg, milk, fish (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Prepare
Melt the butter in an omelette pan.
Carefully slip in the eggs, avoiding breaking the yolks.
Prepare the toast on a hot dish and spread each piece lightly with anchovy paste.
Assemble and serve
Once the eggs are set, place one egg on each piece of toast.
Pour the hot butter from the pan over the eggs.
Dust with cayenne pepper and sprinkle with chopped parsley.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Egg + anchovytop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together2,268 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together34,118 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Butter + anchovytop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together3,672 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Anchovy + parsleytop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together1,688 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
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Butter + parsleytop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together28,543 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Set to form the main topping, with the yolks providing richness and moisture.
- Butter
- Carries heat into the eggs and adds richness and flavour when poured over them.
- Anchovy paste
- Adds a salty, savoury depth that contrasts with the rich eggs.
- Crisp toast
- Provides a crunchy base that holds the eggs and soaks up the butter.
The step that matters
Slipping the eggs into the butter. Eggs cooked in gently heated butter set evenly, while overly hot butter toughens the whites and can break the yolks, so the eggs should be added carefully.
“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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