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 ↓
Hominy Croquettes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the mixture
In a bowl, mix the boiled hominy with melted butter.
Gradually stir in the milk until you achieve a light paste.
Add the white sugar and the well-beaten egg, mixing well.
Shape and fry
Roll the mixture into round balls and flatten them slightly.
Dip each ball in egg, then coat with breadcrumbs.
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.
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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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Milk + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Milk and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 77,875 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
- Hominy
- Provides the bulk and starchy body that holds the croquette together.
- Milk
- Loosens the hominy into a paste and adds moisture and softness inside.
- Egg
- Binds the mixture so the balls hold their shape while frying.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and helps the mixture feel tender.
The step that matters
Frying until golden brown. Frying at a steady heat browns the breadcrumb coating and cooks the inside through. Too little heat leaves the coating pale and greasy, while too much browns the outside before the centre heats.
“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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