Potato Salad

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.

1. Potato + beetroottop 6% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together330 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).

2. Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together8,305 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

3. Pepper + beetroottop 13% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together1,682 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

4. Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together27,814 recipes

   Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

5. Vinegar + beetroottop 15% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together1,630 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 boiled potatoes

Form the bulk of the salad and hold their shape when sliced cold.

Vinegar

Adds acidity that brightens the flavour of the potatoes.

Swap the beetroot

The recipe marks beetroot as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, vinegar, pepper):

1. Capsicumfits better
2. Mustardfits better
3. Cabbagefits better
4. Beetrootthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against potato, vinegar, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.