Why it works: Milk and corn 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 Fritters
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
Beat together the flour, egg yolk, and ½ cup of milk until smooth and light.
Gradually stir in the remaining ¼ cup of milk and the prepared corn.
Fold in the egg white beaten to a froth.
Season with coarse sea salt to taste.
Fry and serve
Heat oil in a pan and fry spoonfuls of the mixture 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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Milk + corntop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,955 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
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Flour + corntop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,165 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + eggtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Egg + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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
- Flour
- Provides the structure that holds the batter together while it fries.
- Egg yolk
- Adds richness and helps bind the batter for a smooth, tender texture.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and thins the batter to a spoonable consistency.
- Corn
- Supplies the main flavor and sweetness, with pieces that stay tender in the batter.
- Egg white
- Beaten to a froth, it lightens the batter and helps the fritters puff.
The step that matters
Fold in the egg white gently. Beaten egg white traps air that gives the fritters lift. Stirring it vigorously deflates the foam, leaving dense, flat fritters.
“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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