Why it works: Buttermilk and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,721 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Butter Milk Batter Cakes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
In a bowl, combine the sour buttermilk and egg.
In another bowl, mix the sifted flour, baking soda, and salt.
Mix and cook
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, stirring until just combined.
Cook on a greased skillet over medium heat until golden brown on both sides.
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.
-
Buttermilk + flourtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,721 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Egg + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together106,462 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Buttermilk + eggtop 25% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,986 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
Egg and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 106,462 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
- Sour buttermilk
- Provides liquid and acidity that reacts with the baking soda to lift the batter.
- Egg
- Binds the batter and adds structure and richness.
- Sifted flour
- Forms the main structure of the cakes as its starches set during cooking.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the sour buttermilk's acid to produce gas that makes the cakes rise.
The step that matters
Stir the dry ingredients in until just combined. Stirring only until the flour is moistened keeps gluten development limited, so the cakes stay tender rather than tough. Overmixing develops gluten and makes the batter chewy.
“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.
You might also like
Buttermilk Pie12 recipes
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.