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Mixed Greens with Potato Croutons and Tarragon Dressing

A mixed greens salad topped with potato croutons and tarragon dressing.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 18 ingredients
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Why it works: Potato and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Mixed Greens with Potato Croutons and Tarragon Dressing

serves 6
Oven400°F

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the croutons

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

  2. Rub 2 cookie sheets with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

  3. Mix the red pepper, onion, vinegar, remaining olive oil, fennel seeds, salt, and ground red pepper together in a medium bowl.

  4. Slice the potatoes very thin by hand, or with an adjustable blade slicer, if you have one.

  5. Add the sliced potatoes to the red pepper, onion, fennel mixture. Toss well to incorporate all the flavors of the seasonings, onions, and peppers.

  6. Spread the mixture of red pepper, onion, fennel, and potato onto the cookie sheets.

Bake the croutons

  1. Bake for 15 minutes.

  2. Turn the croutons over and bake 5 to 15 minutes more, until the potatoes become crisp and the edges are browned.

Make the dressing and assemble

  1. Whisk the dressing ingredients in a medium bowl until the honey is dissolved and everything is thoroughly mixed.

  2. Pour 1/3 cup of the dressing over the greens and toss thoroughly.

  3. Arrange the salad on 6 plates.

  4. Crumb 1/2 teaspoon goat cheese over each salad.

  5. Garnish with equal portions of the baked potato crouton, red pepper, onion medley.

  6. Pour the remainder of the dressing into a small bowl and pass at the table.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

654Calories
18 gProtein
24 gFat
101 gCarbs

Counts 16 of 18 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 16 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Potato1 medium (173g) baked161
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Goat Cheese1 oz (28g)103
Raspberry1 cup (123g)64
Honey1 tbsp (21g)64
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Red Bell Pepper1 medium (119g)31
Fennel1/2 bulb (87g)27
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Shallot1 tbsp minced (10g)7
Arugula1 cup (20g)5
Watercress1 cup (34g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Tarragon1 tsp dried (0.5g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Saladnot in our table0
Seednot 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. Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,023 recipes

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

  2. Potato + olivetop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,458 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

  3. Olive + fenneltop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,344 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  4. Goat cheese + olivetop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together573 recipes

    Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (apple, fatty).

  5. Pepper + fenneltop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,216 recipes

    Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

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

What each ingredient does

Potatoes
Crisp when baked, forming the crunchy, browned croutons that give the salad its texture.
Olive oil
Carries the seasonings and promotes browning and crispness on the baking sheets.
Salad greens
Form the base of the salad, providing leafy volume and texture.
Goat cheese
Adds creamy, tangy richness that contrasts with the crisp croutons and dressing.
Raspberry vinegar
Provides acidity and fruity sharpness that balances the oil in the dressing.
Honey
Adds sweetness to balance the acidity of the vinegar and lemon juice.

The step that matters

Turning and finishing the croutons. Thinly sliced potatoes can burn at the edges before the centres dry out. Turning them and checking for crisp, browned edges ensures even crisping without scorching.

Swap the arugula

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (goat cheese, potato, olive, pepper, onion, vinegar, fennel):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Tomatofits better
  3. Chivefits better
  4. Arugulathe original

Fit is the average pairing score against goat cheese, potato, olive, pepper, onion, vinegar, fennel. 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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