Why it works: Cream and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Potato, Puree of
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the puree
Peel and wash the potatoes.
Boil and drain them, then beat them with a fork.
Stir in the broth or cream and pass through a wire sieve.
Finish and serve
Put the puree in a saucepan with the butter and pepper.
Stir over gentle heat until hot.
Pour into the center of a hot dish and arrange broiled cutlets around it.
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.
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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Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Potato + buttertop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,456 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Potato + creamtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,481 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
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Butter + peppertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Form the main body of the puree once boiled and mashed.
- Broth or thick cream
- Adds moisture and loosens the mashed potato into a smooth texture.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a silky mouthfeel to the finished puree.
The step that matters
Passing the puree through a wire sieve. Sieving breaks down small lumps and fibers left after mashing, giving a smooth, fine texture. Skipping it leaves the puree grainy or stringy.
“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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