Name: Rich Plum Pudding
Ingredients: 1 pound best raisins, stoned; 1 pound currants, washed and picked; 1 pound fresh beef suet, chopped very small; 2 ounces sweet almonds, blanched and chopped; 1 ounce bitter almonds, blanched and chopped; 1 pound sifted flour; 1 pound bread crumbs, soaked in milk and squeezed dry; 2 ounces preserved citron, cut into small pieces; 2 ounces preserved orange peel, cut into small pieces; 2 ounces preserved lemon peel, cut into small pieces; ¼ ounce mixed spice; ¼ pound moist sugar; 8 eggs; 2 wineglassfuls brandy; Milk, as needed; Loaf sugar, for serving

Why it works: Raisin and flour match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,075 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓

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.

Raisin + flourtop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together9,075 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Raisin + almondtop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,781 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
Almond + flourtop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together8,673 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Almond + orangetop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,125 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Raisin + curranttop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together6,180 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, creamy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Eggs: Bind the mixture and set the pudding as it cooks, giving it structure.
Bread crumbs: Soak up milk and add moisture and body to the batter.
Beef suet: Adds richness and fat, keeping the pudding moist and tender.
Flour: Gives the pudding body and structure so it holds together when boiled.
Raisins: Provide sweetness and chewy texture through the pudding.
Moist sugar: Adds sweetness and helps give the pudding a soft, rich crumb.

The step that matters

Boil the pudding for 5 hours. The cloth-wrapped pudding must boil steadily and be kept topped up with water for the full time. Uneven or weak heat leaves the centre dense and undercooked, while the egg and flour set slowly.

Swap the currant

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (raisin, beef, almond, flour, bread, milk, orange):

Figfits better
Vanillafits better
Coconutfits better
Currantthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against raisin, beef, almond, flour, bread, milk, orange. 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.

Rich Plum Pudding