Why it works: Potato and corn match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 938 recipes. Both carry (e)-2-octenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Browned Potatoes
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a very quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Slice cold boiled potatoes into ⅛ to ¼ inch thick pieces.
Place the slices on an oiled baking sheet.
Brush the potatoes with peanut cream.
Sprinkle corn pepper and a little coarse sea salt on top.
Bake in a very hot oven at 400°F (200°C) until browned.
Serve immediately.
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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Potato + corntop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together938 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
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Potato + peanuttop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together161 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
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Peanut + corntop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together346 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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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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Corn + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,324 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Swap the peanut
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, cream, corn, pepper):
- Beansfits better
- Peanutthe original
- Lima beansfits about as well
- Chickpeafits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against potato, cream, corn, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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