Why it works: Corn and wheat match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 465 recipes. Both carry hexanal, which smells green, grassy. The science ↓
Corn Pone
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. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
Make the batter
In a large bowl, mix the corn flour, wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.
Add the egg and butter, then mix well.
Gradually add milk until the batter reaches the right consistency.
Bake
Pour the batter into a greased baking dish.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
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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Corn + wheattop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together465 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
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Wheat + milktop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,418 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Corn + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,955 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
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Flour + wheattop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,373 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Corn flour
- Forms the main body of the pudding and gives it its corn flavor and tender crumb.
- Wheat flour
- Adds structure to the batter so the pudding holds its shape after baking.
- Egg
- Binds the batter and helps it set firm as it bakes.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the batter to produce gas that helps it rise and lighten.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a softer, more tender texture.
- Milk
- Hydrates the flours to create a batter of the right consistency and adds moisture.
The step that matters
Dissolving the baking soda in hot water. Baking soda needs moisture and heat to react fully. Dissolving it evenly in hot water spreads the leavening through the batter so the pudding rises uniformly rather than in patches.
“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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