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Scalloped Oysters

Scalloped oysters baked with breadcrumbs, butter, salt, cayenne, and oyster juice.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Oyster and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 22% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,663 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓

Scalloped Oysters

Oven, in the book's wordsA moderate oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. Butter a baking dish or scallop shells.

Layer

  1. Place one quarter of the breadcrumbs over the bottom of the dish.

  2. Add half the oysters to the dish.

  3. Sprinkle the oysters with salt and cayenne pepper.

  4. Repeat the layers with the remaining breadcrumbs, oysters, and seasonings.

  5. Pour in the oyster juice.

  6. Cover with the remaining breadcrumbs.

Bake

  1. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes.

  2. If using shells, cut the oysters in halves and bake for 15 minutes.

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. Oyster + peppertop 22% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together7,663 recipes

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

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Oysters
Provide the main filling and their briny flavor as they cook in the layers.
Buttered breadcrumbs
Form the crisp, golden layers and absorb the juices as the dish bakes.
Oyster juice
Adds moisture and extra oyster flavor, keeping the breadcrumbs from drying out.

The step that matters

Covering with breadcrumbs before baking. Breadcrumbs sealed over the oysters and juice shield the shellfish from direct heat, so it cooks gently and stays moist while the top browns.

“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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