Why it works: Potato and onion match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and 9,019 recipes mention both. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Directions
Rub a salad bowl with olive oil.
Layer cold boiled potatoes and sliced truffles alternately in the bowl, finishing with truffles on top.
Arrange a circle of small white button onions and stoned olives around the outer edge.
Dress the salad with French dressing, using white wine instead of vinegar if desired.
Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours before serving.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
-
Potato + oniontop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together9,019 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Potato + olivetop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together5,688 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
-
Onion + white winetop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together4,426 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Onion + olivetop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together26,431 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl butyrate (apple, fruity).
-
Olive + white winetop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together2,764 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl isobutyrate (fruity, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, truffle, olive, white wine):
- Tomatobetter flavor fit
- Asparagusbetter flavor fit
- Onionthe original
- Capsicumabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against potato, truffle, olive, white wine. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
You might also like
Illustration
Illustration
Illustration
IllustrationThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.