Why it works: Bread and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,232 recipes. Both carry delta-decalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Macaroni and Cheese
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Grate the cheese.
Cook the macaroni according to package instructions.
Assemble
In a greased dish, layer half of the macaroni and all of the milk. Sprinkle with pepper, salt, cayenne, and some grated cheese.
Repeat the layers until all ingredients are used.
Top with remaining grated cheese and bread crumbs.
Pour melted butter over the top.
Brown and serve
Brown the dish in front of the fire and serve hot.
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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Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,232 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Cheese + breadtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,130 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cheese + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,962 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Cheese + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,426 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Dry cheese
- Melts into the milk to create a rich, creamy sauce and savory flavor.
- Macaroni
- Provides the starchy body that holds the sauce and gives the dish its structure.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that combines with the cheese into a smooth sauce.
- Bread crumbs
- Forms a crisp, golden topping when browned.
- Melted butter
- Adds fat for richness and helps the top crisp and brown.
The step that matters
Brown the dish in front of the fire and serve hot. Heat must be high enough to brown the topping without drying the layers. Cheese sauce turns grainy or oily if overheated, so watch the surface closely and serve while hot and smooth.
“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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