Why it works: Molasses and ginger are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,116 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Quick Baked Indian Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
Make the batter
In a large bowl, combine the milk, cornmeal, molasses, baking soda, cream of tartar, egg, ginger, and salt. Mix well until smooth.
Pour the mixture into a greased baking dish.
Bake
Bake for 30 minutes or until set.
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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Molasses + gingertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,116 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Milk + creamtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together29,399 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Milk + gingertop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,519 recipes
Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
-
Molasses + creamtop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,408 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
- Milk
- Provides the liquid base that the cornmeal thickens and bakes into a custard.
- Cornmeal
- Thickens the liquid and gives the pudding its body and grainy texture as it cooks.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness, dark color, and a deep, caramel-like flavor.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acidic cream of tartar and molasses to lift the pudding and aid browning.
- Cream of tartar
- Acts as an acid that reacts with the baking soda to help the pudding rise and set.
- Egg
- Helps bind the batter and sets during baking to give a firmer custard.
The step that matters
Bake until set. Cornmeal thickens as it heats and the egg sets as it cooks. Stopping too early leaves a loose, soupy center, while overbaking can make the pudding dry and stiff.
Swap the ginger
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, molasses, cream, egg):
- Nutmegfits better
- Cinnamonfits better
- Gingerthe original
- Clovefits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, molasses, cream, egg. 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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