Why it works: Butter and milk match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and 81,222 recipes mention both. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Oysters a LA Newburg
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the oysters
Heat a pan until very hot.
Drain the oysters and add them to the pan.
Add the butter, pepper, and salt; stir until the oysters curl.
Finish and serve
Quickly add the beaten egg yolk mixed with milk or cream.
Mix thoroughly but do not allow to boil.
Stir in the sherry and serve on squares of toast.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Butter + milktop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together81,222 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Oyster + eggtop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together4,093 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Oyster + buttertop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together8,175 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
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Milk + sherrytop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,479 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).
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Butter + sherrytop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together3,505 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg yolk
- Thickens the cream sauce as it gently heats, giving it a smooth, rich body.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and helps coat the oysters in a silky sauce.
- Milk or cream
- Forms the liquid base of the sauce, adding moisture and a creamy texture.
- Sherry
- Adds a light acidity and aroma that balances the richness of the sauce.
The step that matters
Do not let the sauce boil after adding the egg yolk. Egg yolk proteins set when heated, but if the mixture boils they tighten and curdle, leaving a grainy sauce instead of a smooth, thickened one.
“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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