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 ↓
Frying Fish
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Dredge the fish slices in flour, or coat them with beaten egg and bread crumbs.
Heat the sweet dripping or lard in a pan until very hot.
Fry
Fry the fish for about 15 minutes, turning to cook both sides until golden and crisp.
Drain and serve
Drain the fried fish on a cloth before serving.
Garnish with fried parsley and serve with melted butter mixed with lemon juice, if desired.
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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Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Flour + parsleytop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together16,675 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Egg + breadtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together22,662 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Fish
- The main substance, which cooks through to a moist, flaky interior while the outside fries.
- Flour
- Provides a dry base that helps the egg and crumbs adhere to the fish.
- Egg
- Acts as a binder that holds the bread crumbs to the fish surface.
- Bread crumbs
- Form a crisp, golden outer crust when fried.
- Sweet dripping or lard
- Conducts heat evenly and browns the coating, adding a rich flavor and crisp texture.
The step that matters
Heating the fat until very hot. Hot fat sears the coating quickly so it turns crisp and golden instead of soaking up grease. If the fat is not hot enough, the fish absorbs oil, becomes soggy, and the coating can fall off.
“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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