Why it works: Sugar and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Egg-nog
Ingredients
Directions
Make the base
In one bowl, beat the egg yolk with 1 tablespoon of sugar.
Gradually add the whisky to the yolk mixture.
Whip the egg white
In another bowl, beat the egg white with the remaining tablespoon of sugar until stiff peaks form.
Combine
Fold the whipped cream into the egg yolk mixture gradually.
Gently fold in the beaten egg white until combined.
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.
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Whisky + creamtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together258 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Sugar + whiskytop 20% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,008 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Egg + creamtop 24% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together42,166 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Egg and cream barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 42,166 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
- Egg yolk
- Adds richness and body, and emulsifies the whisky into a smooth base.
- Egg white
- Whipped to stiff peaks, it lightens the mixture and gives it airy volume.
- Heavy cream
- Whipped and folded in, it adds fat for a thick, creamy texture.
- Whisky
- Adds alcoholic flavour and aroma to the custard base.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the mixture and helps stabilise the whipped egg white.
The step that matters
Beat the egg white to stiff peaks. Under-whipped egg white collapses when folded in, losing the lightness the drink needs. Over-whipping makes it grainy and dry. Sugar added during whipping helps the foam hold its shape.
“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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