Why it works: Parmesan cheese and cheddar cheese match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 592 recipes. Both carry ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, which smells fruity, apple. The science ↓
Brill a LA Tyrol
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the dish
Spread minced shallot and mushrooms in a dish.
Pour the gravy and Madeira into the dish.
Lay the fish in the dish with the back downwards.
Top and bake
Melt butter in a saucepan and stir in enough breadcrumbs to absorb it.
Season the crumbs with pepper, salt, and minced herbs, then spread them over the fish.
Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven for 30 minutes, basting frequently with gravy.
Serve
Carefully lift the fish onto a serving dish.
Strain the gravy and pour it around the fish.
Garnish with crayfish, parsley, and cucumber slices.
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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Parmesan cheese + cheddar cheesetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together592 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
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Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Parsley + cucumbertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,564 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
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Cheddar cheese + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,436 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Parmesan cheese + buttertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,163 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Brill
- Forms the main body of the dish, cooking gently to a flaky texture under the topping.
- Veloute sauce
- Adds moisture and a smooth, rich base that keeps the fish from drying out.
- Parmesan cheese
- Adds savoury flavour and helps the topping brown in the oven.
- Cheddar cheese
- Adds richness and melts into the topping, aiding browning and flavour.
The step that matters
Basting the fish during baking. Fish protein dries out quickly in a hot oven. Frequent basting with gravy keeps the surface moist and helps the topping brown evenly.
Swap the cucumber
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sauce, parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese, parsley, pepper, butter):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Tomatofits better
- Cucumberthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sauce, parmesan cheese, cheddar cheese, parsley, pepper, butter. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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