Why it works: Rice and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,366 recipes. Both carry (e,e)-2,4-decadienal, which smells fatty, deep fried. The science ↓
Moulded Rice, or Sago, and Apple Juice
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the rice
Rinse the Carolina rice to remove any discolored grains.
Wipe the rice dry with a soft cloth.
Combine the rice with 1 quart of cold prepared apple juice in a pot over gentle heat.
Stir often until it begins to boil to prevent lumps.
Cook until the rice is tender.
Add 6 ounces of sugar and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
Stir constantly until the mixture is very thick and dry.
Mold and chill
Press the mixture into a water-dampened mold.
Refrigerate the molded mixture for 12 hours.
Make the sago and serve
Wash and drain 8 ounces of sago.
Combine the sago with 1½ pints of apple juice.
Add 4 ounces of sugar and the juice and grated rind of 1 lemon.
Boil for 15 to 20 minutes until thick.
Serve plain.
Serve with a rich apple juice syrup flavored with lemon.
Serve topped with almond spikes and custard.
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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Rice + lemontop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,366 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Rice + appletop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,311 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Apple + lemontop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,551 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Apple + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together16,478 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Apple and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 16,478 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
- Carolina rice
- Provides the starchy body that cooks soft and sets firm when the mixture is molded and chilled.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the mixture thicken and dry as it cooks down.
- Apple juice
- Supplies the liquid that the rice absorbs and gives the dish its fruity flavor.
- Sago
- Thickens the apple juice into a glossy sauce as its starch gelatinises during boiling.
- Lemon juice
- Adds acidity that brightens the sweetness of the apple flavor.
The step that matters
Stir constantly until the mixture is very thick and dry. Rice starch can scorch on the base of the pot and lumps can form if it is not stirred. The mixture must be thick enough to hold its shape when pressed into the mold.
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (rice, sugar, lemon):
- Orangefits better
- Limefits better
- Vanillafits better
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against rice, sugar, lemon. 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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