Why it works: Bread and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and 27,232 recipes mention both. Both carry delta-decalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Scotch Woodcock
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the bread
Toast the bread on both sides and butter it thickly.
Spread one side of the bread with anchovy paste.
Cut the bread into finger lengths.
Make the custard
In a bowl, combine the egg yolks and milk to make a custard.
Strain the custard into a jug.
Set the jug in a pan of boiling water and stir with a wooden spoon until it begins to thicken.
Season the custard with salt, pepper, and cayenne, then pour it over the bread.
Serve in a small round or oval dish.
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.
-
Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together27,232 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Bread + anchovytop 10% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together1,260 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanol (green, fruity).
-
Bread + milktop 11% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together11,466 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
-
Egg + anchovytop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together2,330 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the milk into a custard and add richness and a smooth set.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base of the custard that the egg yolks set.
- Anchovy paste
- Adds a salty, savoury umami flavour that cuts through the rich custard.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness to the toasted bread, carrying flavour.
The step that matters
Stir the custard over boiling water until it begins to thicken. Egg yolk proteins set gently with heat, so the custard must be stirred over a steady water bath. Too much heat makes the yolks scramble and turn grainy.
“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.
You might also like
Brown Bread461 recipes
White Bread80 recipes
Bread Omelette60 recipes
Oatmeal Bread51 recipesThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.