Why it works: Vinegar and turbot work together. They rank in the top 26% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 132 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
To Boil Turbot
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the pot
Fill a large pot with water and add the salt and vinegar.
Bring the water to a rapid boil.
Skim off any scum that forms on the surface.
Cook and serve
Add the turbot to the boiling water.
Keep boiling until the turbot rises from the drainer, indicating it is done.
Serve garnished with curled parsley and lemon slices.
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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Vinegar + turbottop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together132 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
- Turbot
- Is the main protein, firming up and turning opaque as it cooks in the boiling water.
- Vinegar
- Adds a light acidity to the poaching water that brightens the flavour of the fish.
The step that matters
Keep boiling until the turbot rises from the drainer. Fish protein sets as it heats, so cooking past the point of doneness toughens and dries the flesh. Watching for the fish to lift off the drainer signals it is ready, so it should be checked rather than left to cook on.
“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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