Why it works: Potato and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,355 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Potato Cakes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Mash two pounds of Irish potatoes through a cullender.
While warm, add one spoonful of lard, a dessert spoonful of salt, and one pound of sifted flour.
Knead the mixture well.
Cook
Roll the dough out and bake on a griddle.
Prick the cakes with a fork.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Lard | 1 tbsp (12.8g) | 115 |
| 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.
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Potato + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,355 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Irish potatoes
- Provide the bulk of the dough and moisture, giving the cakes a soft, tender body.
- Flour
- Forms the gluten structure that holds the dough together and lets it roll out and firm up on the griddle.
- Lard
- Adds fat that tenderises the dough and gives the cakes a richer texture.
The step that matters
Knead the mixture well. Kneading develops gluten in the flour, which gives the dough enough elasticity to roll out without tearing. Under-kneaded dough is crumbly and may break apart on the griddle.
“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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