Why it works: Brandy and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,127 recipes. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. The science ↓
Plum Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Blend the ingredients thoroughly with brandy.
Press the mixture into a buttered mould.
Tie the mould tightly with a floured cloth.
Boil for 5 to 6 hours.
On the day of serving, plunge the pudding into boiling water and boil for at least 2 hours.
Turn it out of the mould and serve with brandy sauce.
For presentation, place a sprig of holly on top and pour brandy around it, then light the brandy before 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.
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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Brandy + buttertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,127 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
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