Why it works: Clove and nutmeg match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,686 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Suet Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
In a large bowl, mix 2 cups of flour with the suet.
Add the milk, molasses, raisins, baking soda, cloves, nutmeg, and salt.
Stir in the remaining cup of flour until well combined.
Cook
Pour the mixture into a greased pudding mold.
Boil for 3 to 4 hours.
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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Clove + nutmegtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together8,686 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Flour + raisintop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,075 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Raisin + nutmegtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,377 recipes
Shared aroma: alpha-terpineol (lilac, floral).
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Flour + nutmegtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,623 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Raisin + clovetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,070 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- All-purpose flour
- Forms the structure that holds the pudding together as it cooks.
- Suet
- Adds richness and a moist, tender texture as it melts during cooking.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the molasses to help the pudding rise and lighten.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, dark color, and moisture to the pudding.
- Raisins
- Add chewy pockets of sweetness throughout the pudding.
The step that matters
Boil for 3 to 4 hours. Long, steady boiling cooks the batter through and sets its structure. If the water boils too weakly or dries out, the pudding can turn out dense or undercooked in the center.
Swap the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, milk, molasses, raisin, nutmeg):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Cardamomfits about as well
- Clovethe original
- Allspicefits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, milk, molasses, raisin, nutmeg. 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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