Steamed Prune Pudding

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. Nutmeg + flourtop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together18,623 recipes

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

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

   Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

5. Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together124,287 recipes

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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

Eggs

Bind the batter and add structure as they set during steaming.

Flour

Provides the structure that holds the pudding together after steaming.

Baking powder

Releases gas in the batter, helping the pudding rise and turn light.

Baking soda

Reacts with the acidic prune pulp and milk to add lift.

Suet or melted butter

Adds fat for richness and a moist, tender crumb.

Prune pulp

Adds moisture, dark color, and sweetness with a deep fruity flavor.

Swap the nutmeg

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, brandy, bread, flour, butter, sugar, egg):

1. Cinnamonfits about as well
2. Nutmegthe original
3. Capersfits less well
4. Clovefits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against milk, brandy, bread, flour, butter, sugar, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.