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Shrimps , Devilled

Shrimp simmered in sauce, seasoned with curry and cayenne, served on artichokes, pastry, or toast with a sauce topping.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Shrimp and sauce are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 16% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,423 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓

Shrimps , Devilled

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Combine the shelled shrimp with either Espagnole Sauce or butter in a stewpan.

  2. Warm the mixture gently, then sprinkle with dry curry powder and cayenne pepper.

  3. Serve in globe artichokes, pastry croustades, or on toast croutons.

  4. Top with a spoonful of Espagnole Sauce, half-glaze, Sauce Madere, or butter.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Shrimp + saucetop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together1,423 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  2. Shrimp + peppertop 24% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,692 recipes

    Shared aroma: phenylethanol (rose, floral).

  3. Sauce + peppertop 27% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together15,303 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

Sauce and pepper barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 15,303 recipes: they 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

Shrimp
Provides the main protein and the body of the dish.
Butter
Adds richness and moisture, carrying the seasonings and keeping the shrimp from drying out.
Espagnole sauce
Adds a rich, savory base that moistens the shrimp and deepens the flavor.
Curry powder
Adds warm, aromatic spice that flavors the shrimp.
Cayenne pepper
Adds heat that gives the dish its sharp, peppery bite.

The step that matters

Warming the mixture gently. Shrimp are delicate and turn rubbery when overcooked. Warming them gently over low heat keeps them tender and lets the butter or sauce coat them evenly.

“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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