Why it works: Sugar and rum are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,908 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Omelet with Rum
Ingredients
Directions
Make the omelet
In a bowl, beat the eggs and mix in the sugar.
Cook the mixture in a skillet to form a plain omelet.
Once cooked, transfer the omelet to a serving dish.
Flambé and serve
Sprinkle a little sugar over the top.
Pour the rum over the omelet and carefully ignite it.
Serve immediately while it is still burning.
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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Sugar + rumtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,908 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Egg + rumtop 27% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,589 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Set into the omelet's structure as they cook, holding the dish together.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the top brown lightly when heated.
- Rum
- Adds aroma and flavour; igniting it gives a brief burst of flame on the surface.
The step that matters
Igniting the rum. Alcohol vapour must be warm enough to catch fire, and pouring from a safe distance with the flame kept away from hair and clothing prevents accidental burns. Use a measured amount of rum and an extinguisher or lid nearby.
“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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