Why it works: Raisin and flour match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,075 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Steamed Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
Combine brown sugar, molasses, sweet milk, butter, soda, raisins, nuts, one egg, flour, and spices.
Steam and serve
Steam for two and one-half hours.
Can be steamed over when ready to serve.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Grape | 1/2 cup (76g) | 62 |
| Molasses | 1 tbsp (20g) | 58 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Walnut | 1 walnut half (4g) | 26 |
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.
-
Raisin + flourtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Raisin + nutstop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together490 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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 that holds the pudding together as it sets.
- Egg (in the method)
- Helps bind the batter and adds structure as it cooks.
- Butter
- Adds fat that gives the pudding a tender, moist texture.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, moisture, and a dark color with a rich flavor.
- Soda
- Reacts with the acidic molasses to produce gas that lightens the pudding.
- Sweet milk
- Adds moisture and hydrates the flour so the batter forms a thick, pourable mixture.
The step that matters
Steam for the full two and one-half hours. Steam gives gentle, moist heat that sets the crumb without drying it. Lifting the pudding out early leaves the center dense, gummy, and under-risen, since the leavening and starches need the full steady heat to set.
Swap the nuts
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, molasses, milk, butter, raisin, flour):
- Almondfits better
- Chestnutfits better
- Pistachiofits about as well
- Nutsthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, molasses, milk, butter, raisin, flour. 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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