Why it works: Sugar and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Cornstarch Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Make the pudding
Beat the eggs in a bowl and set aside.
Heat the milk in a saucepan and add sugar to taste.
Dissolve the cornstarch in a little cold milk, then add to the heated milk, stirring constantly until it thickens.
Divide the mixture into three parts.
Color and serve
Color one part lavender, the second part pink, and leave the third part uncolored.
In small sauce dishes, place a tablespoon of each colored pudding.
Top with whipped cream before serving.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Milk + creamtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together29,399 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Egg + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Milk + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Milk and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 77,875 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cornstarch
- Thickens the milk into a smooth pudding as it heats and sets.
- Eggs
- Add richness and body to the pudding, though the record does not say when they are added.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base of the pudding that the cornstarch thickens.
- Whipped cream
- Adds a light, creamy topping that contrasts with the pudding's texture.
The step that matters
Stirring while the cornstarch thickens. Cornstarch can clump or scorch on the bottom of the pan if the mixture is not stirred constantly while heating, so it thickens smoothly.
“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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