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Poached Eggs in Gravy. CEufs Poches Au Jus.

Poached eggs cooked in a vinegar‑infused water and served with veal sauce.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Vinegar and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,814 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓

Poached Eggs in Gravy. CEufs Poches Au Jus.

Ingredients

Directions

Poach the eggs

  1. In a stewpan, bring water, vinegar, and salt to a boil.

  2. Carefully break each egg into the pan, one at a time, and let them cook without touching for a moment.

  3. Once the eggs have set, allow them to boil lightly.

  4. Remove the first egg with a pierced spoon and place it in cold water if done; repeat for all eggs.

Finish and serve

  1. Once cooled, peel the eggs and return them to warm water until ready to serve.

  2. Drain the eggs on a cloth, then sauce with bon blond de veau and sprinkle with pepper before serving.

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. Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,814 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  2. Vinegar + saucetop 26% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together3,844 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  3. Pepper + saucetop 27% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together15,303 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  4. Vinegar + eggtop 33% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together12,922 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

  5. Egg + peppertop 33% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together50,580 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

Pepper and sauce 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

Eggs
Set into a firm, tender white around a soft yolk, forming the body of the dish.
White vinegar
Helps the egg whites coagulate quickly and hold their shape in the simmering water.
Bon blond de veau reduit
Provides the savoury gravy that coats the eggs and adds richness and depth of flavour.

The step that matters

Breaking the eggs into the simmering water. Eggs added carelessly spread out and form ragged shapes. Breaking each egg into a small dish first and gently sliding it in keeps the white close to the yolk so it sets in a neat shape.

“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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