Why it works: Malt and potato work together. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Yeast, to Make
Ingredients
Directions
Make the hop liquid
Boil the hops in water for about 30 minutes until they sink.
Strain the liquid into a clean bucket, squeeze out the hops, and discard them.
Let the liquid stand for 5-10 minutes until clear.
Make the malt starter
Stir in the malt and let it cool to lukewarm (about 70°F).
Add the yeast and flour and mix well.
Cover with a cloth and let it sit in a warm place for at least 8 hours.
After 8 hours, stir again.
Strain out the grains and bottle the liquid, tying it securely.
Make the potato starter
Boil the potatoes without salt.
Strain and mash them in a clean bucket.
Mix in the flour with the hot potatoes, add 1 quart of water, and stir until combined.
When cooled to 75°F, add ½ pint of the yeast and mix well.
Cover and let it sit in a warm place for about 3 hours.
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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Malt + potatotop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Flour + potatotop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,355 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Malt + flourtop 24% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together260 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Hops + flourtop 32% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together10 recipes
Shared aroma: eugenol (clove, spicy).
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Hops + potatotop 39% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3 recipes
Shared aroma: myrcene (balsamic, herbaceous).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Hops
- Adds bitterness and aroma that balance the sweetness of the malt.
- Malt
- Supplies sugars that the yeast ferments during the starter.
- Yeast
- Ferments the sugars, producing carbon dioxide and alcohol that make the starter active.
- Flour
- Supplies starch and nutrients that feed the yeast and thicken the mixture.
- Potatoes
- Provide starch that is mashed into the liquid, adding body and food for the yeast.
The step that matters
Add the yeast only at about 75°F. Yeast is damaged or killed by very hot liquid, so the mixture must be cooled before the yeast goes in. Adding it too early can stop fermentation before it starts.
Swap the potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (hops, malt, flour):
- Mustardfits about as well
- Potatothe original
- Shallotfits about as well
- Lettucefits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against hops, malt, flour. 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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