Why it works: Parsley and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
To Boil Turbot
Ingredients
Directions
Poach
Place the turbot in a pot and cover it completely with cold water.
Add a handful of coarse sea salt and a glass of vinegar.
Bring the water to a gradual boil, skimming off any impurities that rise to the surface.
Serve
Once cooked, serve the turbot garnished with curled parsley, lemon, and horseradish.
Serve with the finest lobster 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.
-
Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Turbot + saucetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together248 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Turbot + lobstertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together163 recipes
Shared aroma: octanal (fat, soap).
-
Parsley + horseradishtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together562 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
-
Lobster + saucetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,095 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Turbot
- Is the main fish whose firm, delicate flesh becomes flaky when gently poached.
- Coarse sea salt
- Seasons the poaching water so the fish is flavoured through its flesh.
- Vinegar
- Adds a faint acidity to the poaching liquid that brightens the fish's flavour.
The step that matters
Bringing the water to a gradual boil. Heating slowly keeps the water from churning the delicate flesh apart, and skimming removes impurities that would cloud the liquid and flavour the fish.
“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.
More boiled turbot recipes
You might also like
Lemon Sauce236 recipes
Lobster Sauce174 recipes
Lobster Croquettes99 recipes
Horseradish Sauce17 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.