Why it works: Cream and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Chocolate Ice Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Make the custard
Heat the milk until near boiling.
In a bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together.
Slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, stirring constantly.
Add the grated chocolate and cook until thickened, stirring constantly.
Finish and freeze
Cool the mixture, then beat in the cream.
Freeze the mixture until firm.
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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Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Cream + chocolatetop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,466 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Sugar + chocolatetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,404 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Milk + chocolatetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,128 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
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Cream + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together29,399 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Thicken the custard as they cook and give the ice cream a rich, smooth body.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the base and lowers its freezing point, keeping the ice cream softer.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base that the eggs thicken into a custard.
- Cream
- Adds fat, which makes the frozen ice cream smooth and creamy rather than icy.
- Grated chocolate
- Provides the chocolate flavor and adds some fat that contributes to a smooth texture.
The step that matters
Cook the custard until thickened. Egg proteins set as they heat, thickening the mixture. If the custard is overheated or cooked too fast, the eggs can curdle and turn grainy. Stir constantly and cook gently.
“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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