Why it works: Flour and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Corn Bread
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the batter
In a bowl, combine Indian meal, beaten eggs, flour, salt, hot lard, and baking powder.
Add enough sweet milk and boiling water to create a soft batter.
Bake and serve
Pour the batter into a greased shallow tin.
Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C) until golden.
Keep the bread hot in a napkin while serving.
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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Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Egg + flourtop 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
- Eggs
- Bind the batter and add structure as they set in the oven.
- Indian meal
- Provides the main body and corn flavour of the bread.
- Flour
- Adds structure so the crumb holds together after baking.
- Baking powder
- Releases gas that makes the cornbread rise and turn light.
- Hot lard
- Adds fat for tenderness and a rich, savoury flavour.
The step that matters
Adding the boiling water and milk to the batter. Boiling water and milk must be stirred in just enough to make a soft batter. Too much liquid makes the bread dense and wet, while too little leaves it dry and crumbly, since the cornmeal needs moisture to hydrate and set.
“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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