Name: Ham and Potatoes Au Gratin
Ingredients: ⅓ cup butter; ½ cup flour; 2½ cup milk; 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese; ½ tbsp salt; ½ tbsp white pepper; 6 cups sliced potatoes, cooked; 1½ cup cubed, cooked ham; 1½ cup broccoli florets, cooked; ½ cup chopped onion

Why it works: Potato and broccoli match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 910 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓

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.

Potato + broccolitop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together910 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Butter + milktop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together81,283 recipes

Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Cheddar cheese + potatotop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together932 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Butter + cheddar cheesetop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,436 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Milk + potatotop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,611 recipes

Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).

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

What each ingredient does

Butter: Enriches the sauce and carries flavour while it forms the roux base.
Flour: Thickens the milk into a smooth sauce that holds the layers together.
Milk: Forms the liquid base of the sauce, giving it body and moisture.
Cheddar cheese: Melts into the sauce, adding richness, flavour and a creamy texture.
Potatoes: Provide the starchy bulk that becomes tender under the sauce.

The step that matters

Cook the sauce until thickened and bubbly. Flour must be cooked in the hot butter and milk until the starch swells and thickens. Stopping early leaves a thin, grainy sauce that will not hold the layers together.

Swap the white pepper

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, flour, milk, cheddar cheese, potato, ham, broccoli):

Garlicfits better
Parsleyfits better
Capersfits better
White pepperthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against butter, flour, milk, cheddar cheese, potato, ham, broccoli. 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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Pork	100g cooked	242
Potato	1 medium (173g) baked	161
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Cheddar Cheese	1 oz (28g)	113
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Broccoli	1 cup chopped (156g)	55
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Ham and Potatoes Au Gratin