Why it works: Rye and flour match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,320 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Brown Bread
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
In a large bowl, combine rye flour, graham flour, cornmeal, molasses, sour milk, baking soda, and salt.
Beat the mixture vigorously until well combined.
Steam and bake
Pour the batter into one-pound coffee cans.
Steam the cans until the bread is 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.
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.
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Rye + flourtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,320 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Rye + milktop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together918 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + molassestop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,429 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Rye + molassestop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together804 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Flour and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic sour milk and molasses to release gas, so the bread rises and lightens.
- Sour milk
- Its acidity activates the baking soda and adds moisture and a slight tang.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, moisture and a dark color to the bread.
- Rye flour
- Adds a dense, moist crumb and a distinctive flavor, with less gluten to build structure.
- Graham flour
- Adds coarse texture and nutty flavor while contributing some structure to the crumb.
- Cornmeal
- Adds a coarse, tender texture and body to the crumb.
The step that matters
Beat the mixture vigorously until well combined. Baking soda starts reacting as soon as it meets the acidic sour milk, so the batter should be mixed thoroughly and then moved into the cans promptly. Even distribution of the soda gives an even rise and crumb.
“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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