Why it works: Cinnamon and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,189 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Suet Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
In a large bowl, combine chopped suet, raisins, molasses, and baking soda.
Stir in milk, cinnamon, ground cloves, salt, and flour until well mixed.
Pour the mixture into a greased pudding mold.
Steam for 2 to 3 hours until cooked through.
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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Cinnamon + clovetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Raisin + flourtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Raisin + cinnamontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,390 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Cinnamon + flourtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,341 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Raisin + clovetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,070 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Suet
- Adds richness and fat that keeps the pudding moist and tender as it steams.
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the structure that holds the pudding together as it sets.
- Molasses
- Adds moisture, dark colour and a deep sweetness.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses's acidity to lighten the batter and help it rise.
- Milk
- Hydrates the flour and binds the batter into a pourable mixture.
The step that matters
Steam for 2 to 3 hours until cooked through. Steaming gently and for long enough cooks the batter through evenly. Lifting the lid too often or letting the water boil dry can leave the pudding dense or undercooked in the centre.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (raisin, molasses, milk, cinnamon, flour):
- Nutmegfits better
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Clovethe original
- Allspicefits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against raisin, molasses, milk, cinnamon, 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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