Why it works: Milk and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,187 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Chocolate 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 pudding
Bring the milk to a boil.
Scald the bread crumbs in the hot milk and let cool slightly.
In a bowl, beat the yolks of the eggs, then add sugar and chocolate to the bread and milk mixture.
Pour the mixture into a baking dish and bake in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) for 30 minutes.
Top and serve
Once cool, beat the egg whites until stiff and spread them on top as meringue.
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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Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together19,187 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
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Chocolate + vanillatop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,020 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Milk + breadtop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together11,466 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
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Sugar + chocolatetop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,404 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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
- Eggs
- Yolks thicken the pudding and whites form the stiff meringue topping.
- Bread crumbs
- Absorb the hot milk and give the pudding a soft, body-rich texture.
- Milk
- Provides the liquid that cooks the bread and sets into a custard-like base.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps stabilize the beaten egg whites.
- Chocolate
- Supplies the main flavor and color of the pudding.
The step that matters
Beating the egg whites until stiff. Egg whites must be beaten fully cooled and free of any yolk or grease to reach stiff peaks. Under-beaten or greasy whites deflate and weep on the meringue.
“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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