Why it works: Milk and nutmeg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,685 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓
Custards
Ingredients
Directions
Make the custard
Simmer the milk for 10 minutes.
Beat the yolks and whites of the eggs together.
Strain the beaten eggs.
Gradually pour the strained eggs into the milk while stirring to prevent curdling.
Return the mixture to heat.
Stir until thickened and almost boiling.
Remove from heat.
Stir until cool.
Strain the mixture.
Flavour and serve
Add a little brandy, black cherry water, orange-flower water, or minced almonds.
Serve in glasses.
Grate nutmeg over the custard.
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 + nutmegtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,685 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Brandy + nutmegtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,311 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
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Milk + brandytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,738 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
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Egg + nutmegtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together24,744 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Egg + brandytop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,340 recipes
Shared aroma: acetoin (butter, cream).
Egg and nutmeg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 24,744 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
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the custard as they set when gently heated, and add richness.
- Egg whites
- Add protein that helps the custard set and gives it a lighter body.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that the eggs thicken into a smooth custard.
The step that matters
Gradually pour the strained eggs into the milk while stirring. Adding hot milk slowly to the eggs, or stirring constantly, keeps the egg proteins from clumping. Pouring too fast or without stirring lets the eggs scramble and curdle, leaving a grainy texture.
Swap the nutmeg
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, milk, brandy):
- Cinnamonfits about as well
- Nutmegthe original
- Clovefits less well
- Allspicefits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, milk, brandy. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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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