Why it works: Lemon and corn are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,927 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
New Lemon Pie
Ingredients
Directions
Make the filling
In a bowl, mix grated lemons, eggs, molasses, and corn starch with a little water.
In a saucepan, combine the mixture with 1 quart of water and boil for a few minutes.
Assemble and bake
Pour the filling into a pie crust and cover with the second crust.
Bake 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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Lemon + corntop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,927 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Lemon + eggtop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together44,316 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Molasses + corntop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together644 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Egg + corntop 26% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,484 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
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Egg + molassestop 34% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together6,879 recipes
Lemon and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 44,316 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
- Bind the filling and add richness and structure as it cooks.
- Corn starch
- Thickens the filling as it boils, giving it a sliceable body.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness and deep flavor to the filling.
- Grated lemons
- Provide the bright, acidic lemon flavor and aroma.
The step that matters
Boil the filling until thickened. Cornstarch only thickens fully once it reaches a boil and its granules swell and set. Boiling only briefly can leave the filling thin and runny, so it may not set when the pie cools.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, molasses, corn):
- Raisinfits better
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, molasses, corn. 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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