Why it works: Anchovy and sauce are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,057 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Lobster Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the base
Boil the milk and pour it over the breadcrumbs.
Finely mince the lobster flesh and mix it with the breadcrumbs when they are nearly cold.
Mix and steam
Add the beaten eggs, cayenne, anchovy sauce, and salt if necessary, then mix in the cream.
Butter a mold, fill it with the mixture, cover with buttered paper, and steam for 1 hour.
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.
-
Anchovy + saucetop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Lobster + anchovytop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together470 recipes
Shared aroma: octanal (fat, soap).
-
Lobster + saucetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,095 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Lobster + creamtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,050 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
-
Cream + saucetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,787 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Bind the mixture and help it set into a firm, sliceable custard when steamed.
- Breadcrumbs
- Soak up the hot milk and give the mixture body and structure.
- Cream
- Adds richness and moisture, keeping the custard tender rather than dry.
- Milk
- Softens the breadcrumbs and adds moisture to the mixture.
- Lobster
- Supplies the main flavor and firm, flaky texture through the custard.
The step that matters
Steam gently under a buttered paper cover. Egg-based custards turn grainy and watery if cooked too hard or too fast. Steaming at a gentle heat, with the mold covered, lets the eggs set evenly and keeps the texture smooth and moist.
“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.
More lobster cream recipes
You might also like
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.