Why it works: Molasses and buttermilk work together. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and 526 recipes mention both. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: egg, milk (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Grease a 2-quart baking dish.
Honey may be substituted for molasses.
Be sure to grate the sweet potatoes just before using them as they will turn dark and not look as appetizing when cooked.
Make and bake the pudding
Beat eggs, then add molasses or honey, melted butter, and salt.
Stir in the grated sweet potatoes.
Pour the mixture into the baking dish.
Bake for 2 hours or until the pudding is a dark, caramel color.
This recipe comes from the Recipes Wiki on Fandom and is licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Our formatting and summaries are shared under the same licence.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
-
Molasses + buttermilktop 8% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together526 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Butter + eggtop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together118,511 recipes
Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).
-
Sweet potato + buttertop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,489 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Sweet potato + eggtop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together815 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Buttermilk + buttertop 12% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together2,667 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Sweet potatoes
- Provide the bulk and starch that set into a soft, dense pudding texture.
- Eggs
- Bind the mixture and help it set as it bakes.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness and a deep, caramel-like flavor and color.
- Melted butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth, moist texture.
- Buttermilk
- Adds moisture and a slight tang that balances the sweetness.
The step that matters
Grate the sweet potatoes just before using them. Grated sweet potato darkens quickly when exposed to air through oxidation, which makes the cooked pudding look less appetizing. Grating right before mixing limits this browning.
Flavor stand-ins for the sweet potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (molasses, buttermilk, butter, egg):
- Chiveabout as good a flavor fit
- Potatoabout as good a flavor fit
- Sweet potatothe original
- Asparagusabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against molasses, buttermilk, butter, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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
Illustration
Illustration
Illustration
IllustrationThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.