Why it works: Pepper and celery match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 16,012 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Guyanese Potato Salad
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the potatoes and macaroni
Peel, wash and dice potatoes.
Boil potatoes with salt until tender and drain.
Boil macaroni separately with salt and drain also.
Set aside to cool.
Assemble the salad
Wash and chop peppers, celery, and shallot.
Add this to macaroni and potato.
Add corn and mayonnaise and mix.
Add a little evaporated milk until everything is just right to the taste.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
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
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Corn | 1/2 cup kernels (82g) | 77 |
| Shallot | 1 tbsp minced (10g) | 7 |
| Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Celery | 1 stalk (40g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Macaroni | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
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.
-
Pepper + celerytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together16,012 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Potato + corntop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together938 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
-
Potato + celerytop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,047 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Potato + shallottop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together272 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Celery + corntop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together920 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Provide the bulk and soft, tender texture of the salad.
- Macaroni
- Adds body and a firm bite that holds the salad together.
- Mayonnaise
- Adds fat and moisture that bind the salad and carry the flavour.
- Evaporated milk
- Thins the dressing and adds a little creaminess to the salad.
Swap the shallot
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, pepper, celery, corn, evaporated milk):
- Capsicumfits better
- Carrotfits better
- Tomatofits better
- Shallotthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against potato, pepper, celery, corn, evaporated milk. 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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