Why it works: Flour and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 92,116 recipes. Both carry phenylacetaldehyde, which smells hawthorne, honey. The science ↓
Foorah
Ingredients
Directions
Make the paste
Mix the rice flour in a bowl with about 1 cup of water, saving about 1 tablespoon of the flour for coating the balls.
Bring the rest of the water to a boil in a saucepan. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved.
Pour the flour paste gradually into the simmering water and cook, stirring all the time until it forms a thick paste as the rice granules swell.
Milk may be added to the paste during cooking to improve the food value.
Shape and serve
When the rice is thoroughly cooked and contains no raw flavor, allow it to cool slightly, then remove tablespoonfuls of the mixture. Form them into balls and coat with the remaining rice flour.
Serve cold.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Rice | 1 cup cooked (158g) white | 206 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Water | 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.
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 + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
-
Rice + flourtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,611 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Rice + sugartop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,744 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Rice flour
- Forms the thick paste as its granules swell and cook, setting into a firm, chewy ball.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the water and gives the balls their sweet flavor.
The step that matters
Cooking the paste until no raw flavor remains. Rice flour must be stirred over heat until the granules swell and fully cook; undercooked flour tastes raw and produces a pasty, unset texture.
“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.
You might also like
Rice Cake120 recipes
Rice Cream43 recipes
Rice Jelly42 recipes
Rice Pudding22 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.