Why it works: Corn and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,955 recipes. Both carry hexanal, which smells green, grassy. The science ↓
Okange Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Peel and cut five sweet oranges into thin slices, removing the seeds.
Pour a coffee cup of white sugar over the sliced oranges.
Make the custard
Heat a pint of milk until boiling hot by placing it in a pot of boiling water.
Beat the yolks of three eggs and mix in one tablespoon of corn starch that has been made smooth with a little cold milk.
Stir the mixture continuously until it thickens.
Pour the thickened custard over the fruit.
Top and bake
Beat the egg whites to a stiff froth, adding a tablespoon of sugar.
Spread the whipped egg whites over the top as frosting.
Place the pudding in the oven for a few minutes to harden.
Serve cold or hot (preferably cold) for dinner or supper.
Substitute berries or peaches for oranges if desired.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sweet Orange | 1 medium (131g) | 62 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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. See the original page.
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.
-
Corn + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,955 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
-
Corn + orangetop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together586 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Milk + orangetop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,696 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
-
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Milk + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Milk and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 77,875 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
- Eggs
- Yolks thicken the custard and the whites whip into a stiff topping.
- Corn starch
- Starch thickens the milk mixture into a custard as it heats.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base of the custard.
- Sweet oranges
- Provide the fruit layer under the custard, adding sweetness and aroma.
The step that matters
Stir the custard continuously until it thickens. Starch granules swell and thicken the milk only when heated while being stirred; left still, the custard can scorch on the bottom or form lumps.
Swap the orange
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (corn, milk, sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Coconutfits better
- Figfits better
- Orangethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against corn, milk, sugar, 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.
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