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 ↓
Suet Puddings
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Make the batter
Mix the chopped suet, molasses, milk, raisins or currants, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl.
Add the bread crumbs, graham flour, and eggs, and stir until well combined.
Cook the pudding
Pour the mixture into a greased pudding mold.
Steam for 3 hours.
Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 2 hours.
Serve
Serve with lemon sauce.
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.
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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Raisin + flourtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Milk + breadtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,466 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
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Molasses + raisintop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,577 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Beef + milktop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,759 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-hexanal (fruit).
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Beef + breadtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,032 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef suet
- Melts during cooking to keep the pudding moist and rich.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, dark color, and moisture to the pudding.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic molasses to produce gas that helps the pudding rise.
- Eggs
- Bind the mixture and help set its structure as it cooks.
- Graham flour
- Provides the structure of the pudding and a nutty, wholesome flavor.
- Dry bread crumbs
- Absorb liquid and add body, giving the pudding a tender, cake-like texture.
The step that matters
Mixing in the baking soda with the molasses. Baking soda needs an acid to release carbon dioxide, and molasses supplies it. Combine the batter promptly and steam it soon after, so the gas is trapped in the mixture and the pudding rises rather than falling flat.
“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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