Why it works: Butter and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 98,233 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓
Pudding Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Cream the butter in a bowl.
Gradually add the sugar, stirring until light and creamy.
In a saucepan, moisten the cornstarch with a little cold water.
Pour in the boiling water and cook until clear.
Mix the cornstarch mixture with the butter and sugar, and flavor to taste.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Butter
- Adds richness and a smooth, rounded mouthfeel to the sauce.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the sauce and, creamed with butter, helps it turn light and creamy.
- Cornstarch
- Thickens the boiling water into a clear, glossy sauce as its starch gelatinizes.
The step that matters
Pour in the boiling water and cook until clear. Cornstarch only thickens fully when its starch granules are heated in liquid until they swell and gelatinize. If the cornstarch is not properly moistened first, it clumps, and stopping too early leaves the sauce thin and cloudy.
“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.
More pudding sauce recipes
You might also like
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.