Why it works: Potato and flour are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,355 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Potato Rolls
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
In a bowl, combine cold, mashed potatoes with a little coarse sea salt.
Form the mixture into small balls using your hands and a little flour. Flatten each ball slightly.
Fry
Heat hot lard or drippings in a pan.
Fry the flattened potato balls until they are a delicate brown on both sides.
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 + flourtop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,355 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cold, mashed potatoes
- Form the main body of the balls and provide the soft, starchy interior.
- Flour
- Light dusting that keeps the mixture from sticking to the hands while shaping.
- Hot lard or drippings
- Fat for frying that gives the balls a golden-brown crust and rich flavor.
The step that matters
Fry the flattened potato balls until they are a delicate brown on both sides. The fat must be hot enough to brown the surface quickly. If it is too cool, the balls absorb grease and turn soggy instead of forming a crisp, browned crust.
“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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