Why it works: Lemon and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 53,532 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Lemon Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Make the lemon cream
In a saucepan, bring 1½ cups of water to a boil.
Add the yolks of 3 eggs, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, the juice of 1 lemon, and 1 cup of sugar.
Boil for 30 seconds, then stir in the beaten egg whites.
If the mixture is not smooth, strain it.
Chill and serve
Chill and serve cold.
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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Lemon + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Egg + lemontop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together44,316 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Lemon and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the mixture and add richness as they set with heat.
- Cornstarch
- Thickens the liquid and helps the cream hold its shape when cooled.
- Lemon juice
- Adds acidity and bright flavour that balances the sugar.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cream and adds body to the mixture.
- Egg whites
- Add air and lightness to the cream once stirred in.
The step that matters
Boil for 30 seconds, then stir in the beaten egg whites. Cornstarch needs to reach a boil to thicken fully, and the yolks can scramble if overheated. Adding the beaten whites after the boil keeps the cream light and helps it set smoothly when chilled.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, sugar):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits about as well
- Lemonthe original
- Datesfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, sugar. 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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