Why it works: Horse and radish work together. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and 528 recipes mention both. Both carry 1-hexanol, which smells resin, flower. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: fish (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Prepare
Bind tape around the cod's head to prevent the cheeks and jowl from breaking away.
Place the fish in a kettle of cold water.
Poach
Add salt, sweet herbs, vinegar, and shredded horse-radish.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.
Cook for about 30 minutes or until the flesh easily separates from the bone.
Serve
Garnish with scraped horse-radish and serve with liver and roe on the side.
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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Horse + radishtop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together528 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-hexanol (resin, flower).
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Vinegar + radishtop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together507 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Vinegar + horsetop 10% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together331 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cod's head and shoulders
- Provides the main protein, which firms and flakes as it cooks in the simmering liquid.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the flavour and helps keep the fish flesh firm.
- Horse-radish
- Adds a sharp, pungent aroma that cuts through the richness of the fish.
The step that matters
Simmer gently instead of boiling. Once the liquid reaches a boil, it should be reduced to a simmer. A hard boil can toughen the fish and break it apart, so the flesh stays moist and intact.
“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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