Why it works: Rice and cinnamon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,137 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓
Rice Pudding Without Eggs
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Cook the rice
In a large pot, combine the milk, rice, and sugar.
Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
Reduce heat and simmer until the rice is tender, about 20-25 minutes.
Finish and serve
Stir in the butter and cinnamon until well combined.
Serve warm or chilled.
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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Rice + cinnamontop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,137 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Walnut + cinnamontop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,147 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Milk + ricetop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,374 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Rice + walnuttop 9% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together430 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Milk
- Forms the creamy liquid that the rice absorbs and thickens as it cooks.
- Rice
- Its starch swells and softens in the liquid, giving the pudding its body.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness to the pudding.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a silky mouthfeel to the finished pudding.
The step that matters
Simmering the rice. Milk is rich in sugars and proteins that scorch on the bottom of a pot when heat is too high. Keeping the heat low and stirring occasionally lets the rice absorb the liquid and soften evenly without sticking or burning.
Swap the walnut
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, rice, sugar, butter, cinnamon):
- Almondfits better
- Beansfits about as well
- Chestnutfits about as well
- Walnutthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, rice, sugar, butter, cinnamon. 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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