Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Baked Indian Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the batter
Scald 1 cup of Indian meal with a little hot water.
Add the remaining cup of Indian meal, molasses, and butter.
Thin the mixture with milk to achieve a batter consistency.
Bake
Bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) for 3 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.
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Molasses + milktop 21% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together7,243 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
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Molasses + buttertop 30% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,123 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Indian meal
- Cornmeal provides the main body and structure of the pudding as it bakes.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, depth of flavor, and moisture, and helps the top brown during baking.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a tender, smooth texture.
- Milk
- Hydrates the meal into a pourable batter and adds moisture for a soft, custardy interior.
The step that matters
Scald the first cup of Indian meal. Pouring hot water over the meal first gelatinizes its starch, so the pudding sets softer and holds moisture instead of turning dry or grainy during the long bake.
“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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