Why it works: Lobster and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,609 recipes. Both carry 2,6-nonadienal, which smells cucumber, green. The science ↓
Lobster Butter
Ingredients
Directions
Pound the coral of a fresh lobster with enough fresh butter to achieve a bright color.
Add cayenne pepper and salt to taste.
Store in small pots for later use.
The more seasoning you add, the longer the butter will keep.
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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Lobster + buttertop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,609 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
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Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Lobster + peppertop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,247 recipes
Shared aroma: octanal (fat, soap).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Lobster coral
- Provides the rich flavor and bright color that defines the butter.
- Fresh butter
- Carries the coral's color and flavor and gives the finished butter its smooth, spreadable body.
- Cayenne pepper
- Adds gentle heat that sharpens the rich lobster and butter flavor.
The step that matters
Pound the coral into the butter until evenly bright. The coral must be worked thoroughly into the butter so color and flavor spread evenly. Butter that is only partly blended will look patchy and taste unevenly of lobster.
“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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