Why it works: Shallot and capers match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 405 recipes. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓
Whiting Broiled
Ingredients
Directions
Marinate
Soak the cleaned whiting in oil, chives, parsley, shallots, salt, and pepper for 2 hours, basting occasionally.
Broil and serve
Broil the whiting over high heat, moistening with the soaking oil.
Serve with melted butter or a white sauce with capers.
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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Shallot + caperstop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together405 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
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Whiting + saucetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together236 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Chive + shallottop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together450 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Chive + caperstop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together245 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
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Parsley + caperstop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,550 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Whiting
- The fish is the main protein that is cooked and served.
- Oil
- Keeps the fish moist during soaking and broiling and carries the herb flavour.
- Shallots
- Add a mild onion-like aroma that infuses the oil during soaking.
The step that matters
Broil the whiting over high heat, moistening with the soaking oil. Whiting is a lean, delicate fish that dries out quickly under intense heat. Basting with the oil keeps the flesh moist while the surface browns, so the fish cooks through without becoming dry.
Swap the chive
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (whiting, parsley, shallot, pepper, butter, sauce, capers):
- Chivethe original
- Mustardfits about as well
- Horseradishfits about as well
- Welsh onionfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against whiting, parsley, shallot, pepper, butter, sauce, capers. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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