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 ↓
Potato Salad
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Cut 1 quart of boiled potatoes into dice.
Sprinkle over them a teaspoon of chopped onion and 1 teaspoon of chopped parsley.
Boil 3 eggs hard.
Cool the eggs and slice each lengthwise into quarters.
Make the dressing
Heat 1 cup of vinegar to the boiling point.
Add 2 tablespoons of butter to the vinegar.
Season the vinegar with salt and pepper.
Assemble
Garnish the potatoes with the sliced eggs.
Pour the dressing over the potatoes.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
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 + oniontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Potato + buttertop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,456 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Vinegar + oniontop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,226 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Form the body of the salad and absorb the warm dressing for flavour.
- Vinegar
- Provides acidity that gives the dressing its sharp, tangy flavour.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a smooth fat to the warm dressing.
- Eggs
- Add firm texture and a mild, rich flavour as a garnish.
The step that matters
Heating the vinegar to the boiling point. Hot vinegar softens the butter into the dressing and helps the potatoes absorb its flavour. Boiling it too long, however, drives off much of the sharp acidity, so it should be heated just to the boil.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, vinegar, butter, egg, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Chivefits better
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against potato, vinegar, butter, egg, pepper. 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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