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Scalloped Oysters

Scalloped oysters are baked oysters topped with a buttery breadcrumb mixture.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Bread and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,232 recipes. Both carry delta-decalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓

Scalloped Oysters

Oven, in the book's wordsA hot oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

  2. In a bowl, mix the bread crumbs and cracker crumbs, then stir in the melted butter.

  3. Spread a thin layer of the crumb mixture in a buttered shallow baking dish.

Layer and bake

  1. Layer half of the oysters on top and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

  2. Add half of the oyster liquor and cream, then repeat the layers.

  3. Finish with the remaining crumb mixture on top.

  4. Bake for 30 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. Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,232 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).

  2. Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together81,283 recipes

    Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).

  3. Milk + breadtop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together11,466 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

  4. Oyster + buttertop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together8,184 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).

  5. Oyster + breadtop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,545 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 flavor and tender, briny filling that cooks through in the baking.
Bread crumbs
Absorb liquid and butter to form a moist, lightly crisp crumb coating.
Cracker crumbs
Add structure and a toasty, slightly salty flavor to the crumb topping.
Melted butter
Adds fat that coats the crumbs and promotes golden browning in the oven.
Milk or cream
Adds moisture and richness so the layers stay tender rather than dry.

The step that matters

Layering the oysters and liquor. Keeping the oysters covered with crumbs and enough liquid prevents them from drying out or toughening in the hot oven, while the liquid gently moistens the crumbs.

“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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