Why it works: Pepper and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Potato Salad
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the potatoes
Peel and slice thin while hot, twelve small boiled potatoes.
Make the bacon and onion
Fry half a pound of lean bacon and cut in bits.
When almost brown, put in half an onion chopped fine, cook a moment, and pour over the warm potatoes.
Dress and serve
Mix well by shaking and tossing, and season with salt and pepper.
Make a mixture of two parts mayonnaise with one part of vinegar and pour over the potatoes.
Sprinkle with chopped parsley, and serve as it is, but never serve cold.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Bacon | 1 slice cooked (8g) | 43 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Parsley | 1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g) | 1 |
| 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.
-
Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Potato + parsleytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,855 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Form the bulk of the salad and absorb the dressing while warm.
- Bacon
- Adds savory, smoky fat and browned flavor to the salad.
- Mayonnaise
- Provides creamy fat that coats the potatoes and carries flavor.
- Vinegar (in the method)
- Adds acidity that brightens the rich mayonnaise and bacon.
The step that matters
Dress the potatoes while they are warm. Warm potato slices absorb the dressing and seasoning readily, while cold ones stay bland and resist coating. Serving cold is what the record warns against.
Swap the potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, parsley):
- Carrotfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Shallotfits better
- Potatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, parsley. 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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