Why it works: Mushroom and parmesan cheese are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,199 recipes. Both carry methyl 2-methylbutyrate, which smells apple, fatty. The science ↓
Pate De Macaroni
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Cook macaroni in water or broth until tender, then strain and cut into pieces.
Layer macaroni at the bottom of a dish.
Make ham balls by pounding ham with butter and add to the dish.
Prepare game, cock's-combs, ox-palates, sweetbread, and mushrooms, stewing them in a rich sauce.
Layer the meat mixture over the macaroni, alternating with layers of cream and gravy until the dish is filled.
Cover with a paste and bake at 300°F (150°C), or stew in a Dutch oven without the paste.
Optionally, mix macaroni with grated Parmesan cheese before layering.
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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Mushroom + parmesan cheesetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,199 recipes
Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (apple, fatty).
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Butter + mushroomtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,525 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Butter + parmesan cheesetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,163 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Mushroom + creamtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,500 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
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