Why it works: Sweet potato and butter are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 20% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,491 recipes. Both carry 2,3-pentanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Sweet Potatoes
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.
Wash and clean the sweet potatoes. Bake in a hot oven at 400°F (200°C) for one hour.
Alternatively, steam over boiling water for 30 to 45 minutes.
When almost done, scrape or peel them, place in a dripping pan, and bake for an additional 30 minutes.
You can also cut the sweet potatoes into slices and fry in butter or lard.
For frying, peel and slice raw sweet potatoes, then fry in a griddle or frying pan with a little melted lard, cooking carefully to avoid overcooking.
Another option is to drop slices in boiling lard in a frying pan, turning until golden brown on both sides.
Lastly, halve or quarter the sweet potatoes and bake in a pan with roast beef, basting often with the drippings.
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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Sweet potato + buttertop 20% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,491 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
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