Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Potato Souffle
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the base
In a saucepan, combine mashed potatoes and butter over medium heat, then season to taste.
Make the mixture
Gradually add milk and beaten egg yolks, stirring until the mixture thickens.
Remove from heat and fold in beaten egg whites until combined.
Bake
Pour into a baking dish, smooth the surface, and bake at 400°F (200°C) until golden.
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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Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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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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Potato + buttertop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,456 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Milk + eggtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Mashed potatoes
- Provides the bulk and body that holds the soufflé together.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth, tender texture.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and loosens the potatoes into a pourable base.
- Egg yolks
- Thicken the base as they heat and add richness to the custard.
- Egg whites
- Trap air when beaten, lightening the mixture and helping it rise in the oven.
The step that matters
Fold in the beaten egg whites. Beaten egg whites hold air bubbles that give the soufflé its lift. Stirring them in vigorously deflates the foam, so fold gently with a spatula only until the mixture is just combined.
Swap the potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, milk, egg):
- Potatothe original
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Chivefits less well
- Leekfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, milk, egg. 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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