Why it works: Potato and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,305 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Dropped Codfish Balls
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Pick the fish very fine and measure lightly into the bowl.
Put the potatoes in the boiler, the fish on top of them, cover with boiling water and boil half an hour.
Draw off all the water, mash the fish and potatoes together until fine and light, then add butter, pepper and eggs well beaten.
Fry
Have a deep pan of boiling fat, dip a tablespoon in it and take up a spoonful of the mixture.
Drop into the boiling fat and fry until brown (about ten minutes).
The spoon should be dipped in the hot fat every time you take a spoonful of the mixture.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
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 + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 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).
-
Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
-
Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
-
Potato + eggtop 29% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,978 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Bulk the mixture and give the balls a soft, floury interior when mashed.
- Eggs
- Bind the mashed fish and potato together so the balls hold their shape.
- Butter
- Adds richness and moisture to the mashed mixture.
The step that matters
Dipping the spoon in the hot fat each time. A spoon dipped in hot fat releases the sticky mixture cleanly into the pan. A cold spoon lets the mixture cling and misshape the balls, and cooler fat absorbs more oil and browns unevenly.
Swap the potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, butter, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Chivefits about as well
- Potatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, butter, 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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