Why it works: Chocolate and syrup are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,239 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Cocoa Shake
Ingredients
Directions
Make the shake
In a shaker, combine the egg and chocolate syrup.
Add shaved ice and shake well.
Strain the mixture into a glass.
Finish and serve
Fill with soda and pour from one glass to another before serving.
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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Chocolate + syruptop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,239 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Egg + chocolatetop 24% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,448 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptenal (green).
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Egg + syruptop 32% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,995 recipes
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg
- Adds body and creaminess, and forms a foam when shaken hard with the syrup.
- Chocolate syrup
- Provides sweetness and the main chocolate flavor.
- Soda
- Adds fizz and lightness to the finished drink.
The step that matters
Shake well with the shaved ice. Vigorous shaking with ice chills the mixture and blends the egg into the syrup, creating a smooth, frothy texture. If it is shaken briefly, the egg stays unmixed and the drink turns out thin and flat.
“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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