Why it works: Potato and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Potato Pie
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure. The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Prepare
Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C).
Line a deep pie dish with the pie crust.
Fill and bake
Fill the dish with the shredded potatoes.
Mix in the sliced onions, pepper, salt, and butter or lard.
Pour in enough milk or cream to fill the dish.
Optionally, cover with another crust.
Bake for 45-60 minutes until golden and set.
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 + oniontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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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 + milktop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,611 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
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Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 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 pie and soften as they bake into a tender filling.
- Milk or cream
- Adds moisture and richness, and its proteins set into a custard-like binder as it bakes.
- Butter or lard
- Adds fat for richness and flavour and helps the filling brown lightly.
- Onions
- Add savoury sweetness and aroma as they cook in the pie.
The step that matters
Bake until golden and set. Underbaking leaves the milk or cream liquid and the potatoes raw inside, while the custard needs enough heat to set. Check that the centre is firm and the potatoes are tender before removing it from the oven.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, pepper, butter, milk):
- Capsicumfits better
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Tomatofits about as well
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against potato, pepper, butter, milk. 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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