Name: All-star Corn Dogs
Ingredients: 10 Frankfurters; 1 cup flour; 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal; 3 tablespoons shortening; 1 egg, beaten; 3/4 cup milk; oil (for frying)

Why it works: Flour and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓

All-star Corn Dogs

Ingredients

Directions

Make the batter

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
Using a fork, work in the shortening in the dry mixture until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.
In another bowl, mix egg and milk, then add it to the dry mixture. Mix well.

Fry and serve

Dip the frankfurters in the batter, then drop them into hot oil and fry until golden on each side.
Serve corn dogs on sticks, with mustard if desired.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

903Calories

27 gProtein

40 gFat

108 gCarbs

Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 6 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Frankfurter	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

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.

Flour + milktop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together78,219 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together106,462 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Egg + milktop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together88,785 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

Flour and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 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

Flour: Provides the main structure of the batter once it sets in hot oil.
Baking powder: Releases gas in the batter, helping it puff and turn light as it fries.
Shortening: Rubbed into the dry mix to add tenderness and a crumbly texture.
Egg: Binds the batter and adds structure as it cooks.
Milk: Hydrates the dry ingredients into a batter and aids browning.

The step that matters

Frying the dipped frankfurters. The oil must be hot enough to set and brown the batter quickly; if it is too cool, the batter absorbs oil and turns greasy and pale rather than crisp and golden.

“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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All-star Corn Dogs