Why it works: Flour and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
French Bread
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.
Make the dough
In a large bowl, mix the flour, beaten and strained egg yolks, egg whites, yeast, and salt.
Add enough warm milk to create a thin, light dough; stir well without kneading.
Divide the dough into several wooden dishes, each holding about 1 quart.
Set the dishes aside to rise.
Bake and finish
Once risen, turn the dough out onto a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C).
When done, rasp the bread to finish.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 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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Egg + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Flour and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 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
- Flour
- Forms the main structure of the bread as its proteins and starches set during baking.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and fat, giving the crumb a tender texture and golden colour.
- Egg whites
- Add protein and help lighten the dough, supporting a airy crumb.
- Yeast
- Produces gas that makes the dough rise, giving the bread its open texture and flavour.
The step that matters
Set the dishes aside to rise. The dough is thin and light, so it needs enough time for yeast to produce gas. Under-rising leaves a dense loaf, while over-rising can collapse the structure before baking.
“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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