Why it works: Rice and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,456 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
Rice Flummery
Ingredients
Directions
Make the base
In a saucepan, combine the milk, sugar, isinglass, and ground rice.
Bring to a gentle boil and stir occasionally for 30 minutes.
Add a drop of essence of almonds and the brandy.
Layer and set
Color half of the mixture pink with cochineal and leave the other half white.
Pour one half into the bottom of a jelly mold and let it cool slightly.
Carefully pour the other half on top when nearly cold.
Serve
To serve, turn out the flummery from the mold as you would a jelly.
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.
-
Rice + almondtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,456 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Milk + ricetop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,374 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Milk + brandytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,738 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
-
Milk + almondtop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,800 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Almond + brandytop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,969 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Isinglass
- Sets the liquid into a firm, tender jelly as it cools.
- Ground rice
- Thickens the milk and gives the flummery a smooth, soft body.
- White sugar
- Sweetens the dish and balances the flavor of the brandy and almond.
- Milk
- Forms the creamy base that the gelling and thickening agents set in.
The step that matters
Pouring the second layer. If the second half is poured too hot, it can melt into the partly set first layer and blur the pink and white division. Pouring when nearly cold lets it sit on top as a distinct layer.
“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.
You might also like
Rice Cake120 recipes
Brandy Peaches68 recipes
Rice Cream43 recipes
Rice Jelly42 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.