Why it works: Corn and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,165 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Corn Fritters
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
In a bowl, mix the grated corn with the smooth egg yolks and season well.
Add the flour to the mixture and combine thoroughly.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the corn mixture.
Fry
Heat oil in a pan and fry spoonfuls of the mixture until golden brown.
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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Corn + flourtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,165 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Egg + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Corn + eggtop 26% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,484 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
Egg and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 106,462 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
- Grated corn
- Provides the main body and sweet corn flavour of the fritters.
- Egg yolks
- Add richness and help bind the batter together.
- All-purpose flour
- Gives the batter structure so the fritters hold their shape while frying.
- Egg whites
- Whipped to stiff peaks, they make the batter light and airy.
The step that matters
Folding in the egg whites. Whipped whites trap air that gives lift. Stirring them in vigorously knocks that air out, leaving dense fritters, so fold gently and stop once no white streaks remain.
“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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