Why it works: Chicken and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 23% of all ingredient pairs, and 6,241 recipes mention both. Both carry 1-octen-3-one, which smells mushroom, metallic. The science ↓
Creme De Volaille
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Rub the chicken through a sieve.
Whip the egg whites until stiff.
Make the mousse
Mix the chicken and cream with the whipped egg whites using a spoon.
Add flavoring to taste.
Cook and serve
Steam in a mold for one hour.
Serve with a white sauce, truffles, peas, or plain.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Chicken + creamtop 23% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together6,241 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
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Egg + creamtop 24% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together42,166 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Chicken + eggtop 30% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together8,991 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
Egg and cream share little aroma chemistry, yet 42,166 recipes mention both: they likely 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
- Chicken
- Provides the main protein that sets into a delicate, tender body when cooked.
- Egg whites
- Whipped to stiff foam, they lighten the mixture and help it set with structure.
- Cream
- Adds fat and moisture, keeping the mixture soft and rich after steaming.
The step that matters
Folding the whipped egg whites into the chicken and cream. Stirring too hard or too long deflates the foam, and the mousse loses the air that makes it light. Gentle folding keeps the volume that gives the texture.
“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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