Why it works: Potato and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,456 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Potato Chips
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a hot oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the potatoes
Wash and peel the potatoes, then cut them into very thin slices.
Place the slices on a cloth and drain thoroughly to absorb all moisture.
Prepare a well-buttered paper bag and add the potato slices.
Close the bag and fasten the end with clips.
Bake and serve
Place the bag on a grid shelf in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C).
Cook for about 15 minutes, turning once or twice during cooking.
Open the bag, season the chips with fine salt, and serve.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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 + buttertop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,456 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Thin slices of starchy potato crisp and brown as moisture evaporates in the oven.
- Butter
- Coats the bag and slices, adding fat that promotes gentle browning and flavor.
The step that matters
Drain the potato slices thoroughly. Surface moisture must be removed before baking, because water left on the slices slows evaporation and keeps the chips soft rather than crisp.
“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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