Why it works: Milk and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
London Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Make the base
Combine 2 oz. Allinson steam-cooked oats, 1 large tablespoonful of sugar, 1/2 pint of milk, 1 oz. butter, and 1 pint custard made with Allinson custard powder.
Boil the milk with the oats, butter, and sugar, cooking gently for 15 minutes.
Bake and serve
Pour the mixture into a pie dish and add 1 pint of custard made according to the recipe given, stirring carefully.
Bake for 1½ to 2 hours.
Let it cool for a short time before serving.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Nutmeg | 1 tsp ground (2.2g) | 12 |
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.
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Milk + nutmegtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,685 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Butter + nutmegtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together24,377 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Egg + nutmegtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together24,744 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Egg and nutmeg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 24,744 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
- Steam-cooked oats (in the method)
- Provides body and a soft, thick texture as the pudding bakes.
- Milk
- Supplies moisture and helps form a creamy, tender custard.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth mouthfeel.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the pudding brown lightly in the oven.
- Custard
- Adds moisture and a rich, set custard flavour to the pudding.
The step that matters
Baking until just set. Custard sets as its egg proteins firm with heat. Overbaking can make it curdle, weep liquid, or turn grainy, so check that it is set but still tender.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, butter, sugar, egg):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegthe original
- Gingerfits less well
- Parsleyfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, butter, 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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