Why it works: Corn and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,955 recipes. Both carry hexanal, which smells green, grassy. The science ↓
Corn Bread
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a rather hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
Sift together corn meal, flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.
Rub in the cold lard.
Make and bake
Add the beaten eggs, milk, and Cerealine; mix into a moderately stiff batter.
Pour the batter into a shallow cake pan.
Bake 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.
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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Corn + milktop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,955 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
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Corn + flourtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,165 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
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Egg + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Milk and flour 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
- Lard
- Rubbed into the dry mix, it coats flour particles and shortens the crumb for a tender texture.
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure and richness as the cornbread sets.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas in the batter, helping the cornbread rise and lighten.
- Corn meal
- Forms the main body of the cornbread and gives it its grainy texture and flavor.
- Milk
- Hydrates the dry ingredients to form a batter and adds moisture and tenderness.
The step that matters
Rubbing in the cold lard. Cold fat must be worked into the flour so it stays in small distinct pieces. These coat the flour and limit gluten development, keeping the cornbread tender rather than tough.
“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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