Why it works: Anchovy and sauce are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,057 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
To Boil Skate
Ingredients
Directions
Place the skate pieces in a pot with spring water and salt.
Bring to a boil and let it cook for 15 minutes.
Serve with melted butter and anchovy sauce.
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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Anchovy + saucetop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Butter + anchovytop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,697 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Butter + saucetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together15,338 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Butter and sauce barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 15,338 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
- Skate
- Provides the main protein, which firms and flakes as it cooks in simmering water.
- Melted butter
- Adds richness and fat that complements the mild, delicate flesh of the fish.
- Anchovy sauce
- Adds a salty, savoury depth that contrasts with the mild flavour of the skate.
The step that matters
Keep the water at a gentle simmer after it boils. Once the pot reaches a boil, a vigorous rolling boil can toughen and break up delicate fish flesh. A gentle simmer cooks the skate evenly and keeps the pieces tender 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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