Name: English Plum Pudding
Ingredients: one-half pound of stale bread one-fourth pound of figs; one-eighth pound of citron; one cupful of hot milk; one-half pound of suet; one-half cupful of sugar; one-fourth cup of brandy; one-half teaspoonful each of cin- one-half pound of raisins; one-half pound of currants; one teaspoonful of salt; one-fourth pound of figs; four eggs; one-half pound of raisins; three-quarters full

Why it works: Brandy and currant are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,057 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓

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.

Brandy + curranttop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together3,057 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
Fig + raisintop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together737 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Fig + milktop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,026 recipes

Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
Raisin + curranttop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together6,180 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, creamy).
Bread + milktop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together11,466 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Eggs: Yolks enrich and bind the batter, while beaten whites lighten its texture.
Stale bread: Soaked in milk, it absorbs liquid and gives the pudding its soft body.
Suet: Its fat melts during steaming, adding richness and a moist, tender crumb.
Sugar: Adds sweetness and helps balance the richness of the fruit and suet.
Raisins: Dried fruit that adds concentrated sweetness and chewy texture to the pudding.

The step that matters

Beat the whites of the eggs stiff and add to the mixture.. Whites beaten to stiff peaks trap air that lightens the dense mixture. Folding gently keeps that air in, so the steamed pudding stays tender rather than heavy.

Swap the currant

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (bread, fig, milk, sugar, brandy, raisin, egg):

Vanillafits better
Apricotfits better
Applefits better
Currantthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against bread, fig, milk, sugar, brandy, raisin, egg. 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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Grape	1/2 cup (76g)	62
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Fig	1 medium (50g)	37
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Brandy	not in our table	0

English Plum Pudding