Why it works: Cream and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Oyster Omelette
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the eggs
Whisk the eggs until frothy.
Gradually add the cream or milk and beat well.
Season with salt and pepper.
Cook the omelette
Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat.
Pour the egg mixture into the pan.
Add the halved oysters on top.
Cook until set, then fold and serve.
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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Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Oyster + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,184 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
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Egg + oystertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,103 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Cream + oystertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,886 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
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Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Set into the structure of the omelette as they cook, holding the dish together.
- Cream or milk
- Adds moisture and softness, giving a more tender texture to the eggs.
- Oysters
- Provide the main flavour and a briny, savoury contrast to the rich eggs.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and keeps the eggs from sticking to the pan.
The step that matters
Cook until set, then fold. Eggs turn tough and rubbery when overcooked at high heat, so cook gently over medium heat until just set and fold while still moist.
“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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