Why it works: Milk and molasses are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,243 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓
Baked Indian Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the base
Scald 1 pint of milk.
Stir in ½ cup of Indian meal, ½ cup of molasses, and a pinch of salt.
Bake
Let the mixture cool, then pour 1 pint of cold milk over it without stirring.
Bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) for about 4 hours.
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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Milk + molassestop 21% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together7,243 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that thickens and sets into a soft, custard-like pudding as it bakes.
- Indian meal
- Thickens the pudding as it absorbs liquid and swells, giving it a grainy, porridge-like body.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, dark color, and a rich, caramel-like flavor.
The step that matters
Pouring the cold milk over without stirring. The cold milk must sit on top of the cooled mixture rather than being blended in. Stirring would mix the cornmeal into the liquid evenly, changing how the pudding thickens and sets during the long, slow bake.
“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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