*It was pouring with rain and she was wondering what to do.*

This is the sentence which I used answering the question [Is it grammatically correct to use two past continuous tenses in a single sentence?](https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/161942/is-it-grammatically-correct-to-use-two-past-continuous-tenses-in-a-single-senten/161945#161945).
The sentence is taken from *Grammar and Vocabulary for First Certificat*e by L.Prodromou (2005). 

But one commentator said: *This may just be me, but "**It was pouring with rain**" sounds odd to me - not because of the progressive, but because I would expect "**It was pouring rain**" instead.*

In my perception, the idiom "to pour with rain" is just fine. It doesn't sound odd to me. I'm interested in other people's views. Is *to pour with rain* odd, kind of dated?