Why it works: Sugar and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 122,807 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Tapioca Cream--in Glasses
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the tapioca
Add 2 tablespoons of tapioca, a scant cup of water, 1 quart of milk, 3 eggs, and ½–1 cup of sugar and salt.
Soak tapioca in water.
Make the custard
Cook the soaked tapioca in the milk with half the sugar in a double boiler until clear.
Add beaten yolks of eggs.
Remove from heat and, while hot or nearly cold, pour over the whites beaten with the remaining sugar.
Flavor and serve in glasses.
Beaten whites may be chopped into the cold custard just before serving, or served on top of it.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Water | not in our table | 0 |
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.
-
Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Tapioca
- Swells when soaked and cooked, thickening the milk as it turns clear and gives the cream body.
- Milk (in the method)
- Forms the liquid base of the cream, thickened by the tapioca and enriched by the yolks.
- Eggs
- Yolks thicken and enrich the custard; beaten whites add lightness to the finished cream.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the cream and helps stabilize the beaten egg whites.
The step that matters
Cook the soaked tapioca in the milk until clear. Tapioca pearls must cook long enough to fully soften and swell; undercooked tapioca stays firm and chalky, while the gentle heat of a double boiler helps prevent the milk from scorching or the yolks from curdling.
“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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