Christmas Plum Pudding

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.

1. Mace + nutmegtop 4% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together6,557 recipes

   Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

2. Nutmeg + raisintop 6% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together5,377 recipes

   Shared aroma: alpha-terpineol (lilac, floral).

3. Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together81,283 recipes

   Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).

4. Currant + raisintop 10% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together6,180 recipes

   Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, creamy).

5. Mace + curranttop 12% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together1,791 recipes

   Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Suet

Adds fat that keeps the pudding moist and rich in texture.

Eggs

Bind the mixture and give the pudding structure as it cooks.

Butter

Adds fat for richness and a tender crumb.

Sugar

Adds sweetness and helps give the pudding its dark color and flavor.

Currants

Provide concentrated fruit sweetness and chewy texture throughout the pudding.

Raisins

Provide concentrated fruit sweetness and chewy texture throughout the pudding.

Swap the mace

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, sugar, egg, butter, currant, nutmeg, raisin):

1. Cinnamonfits better
2. Allspicefits better
3. Clovefits better
4. Macethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against milk, sugar, egg, butter, currant, nutmeg, raisin. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.