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Salad

Italian Potato Salad

A salad of sliced potatoes, onions, olives, green pepper, tomato, dressed with Italian dressing and parsley, topped with parmesan cheese.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 10 ingredients
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Why it works: Olive and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Italian Potato Salad

Time9-10 min.

Ingredients

Directions

Cook the potatoes

  1. Scrub potatoes; cut crosswise into ¼ in. slices.

  2. Place in 1 ½ qt. microwave safe casserole.

  3. Add water and salt.

  4. Cover with lid.

  5. Microwave on high for 9-10 min. or until potatoes are tender; stirring once.

  6. Drain and cool.

Assemble and chill

  1. Add onions, olives, green pepper, tomato, dressing and parsley.

  2. Mix lightly to coat evenly.

  3. Refrigerate until chilled.

  4. Stir before serving and sprinkle with cheese.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

373Calories
18 gProtein
8 gFat
59 gCarbs

Counts 8 of 9 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 8 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Potato1 medium (173g) baked161
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Bell Pepper1 medium (119g)31
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Olive1 large (4g)4
Parsley1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

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.

  1. Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,539 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together34,122 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  3. Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,023 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  4. Potato + parsleytop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,855 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  5. Potato + tomatotop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,798 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

New red potatoes
Provide the main body of the salad, holding their shape when cooked until tender.
Italian dressing
Supplies moisture and tangy acidity that coats the potatoes and vegetables.
Ripe olives
Add salty, briny flavor and a soft texture to the salad.
Parmesan cheese
Adds savory, salty flavor as a finishing sprinkle.

The step that matters

Microwave the potatoes until just tender, then drain and cool. Overcooking makes slices mushy and they break apart when tossed. Drain and cool them before adding dressing, because warm potatoes absorb dressing unevenly and can thin it, so coating stays uneven.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, olive, pepper, tomato, parsley, parmesan cheese):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Spinachfits better
  3. Carrotfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against potato, olive, pepper, tomato, parsley, parmesan cheese. 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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