Why it works: Milk and butter 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 ↓
Fritter Batter
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
In a bowl, mix together the flour, salt, sugar, cream of tartar, and baking soda.
Add the beaten egg and milk, stirring until well combined.
Beat the mixture until light and fluffy.
Melt the butter and add it to the batter.
Fry
Heat the frying fat in a pan until very hot.
Drop spoonfuls of the batter into the hot fat and fry until golden brown.
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.
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Flour + milktop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together78,219 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- All-purpose flour
- Provides the main structure that holds the fritters together as they cook.
- Egg
- Binds the batter and adds structure and richness to the fritters.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the cream of tartar to produce gas that lightens the batter.
- Cream of tartar
- Acidifies the batter so it reacts with the baking soda, helping the fritters rise.
- Milk
- Hydrates the flour and adds moisture and tenderness to the batter.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richer flavor and a tender crumb.
The step that matters
Heat the frying fat until very hot before adding the batter. If the fat is not hot enough, the batter absorbs oil and becomes greasy instead of forming a crisp, golden crust. Very hot fat sets the outside quickly while the inside stays light.
“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
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Mutton Broth292 recipes
Yorkshire Pudding264 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.