Why it works: Potato and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,230 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Potato Pudding
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a moderate oven”. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the mixture
Boil the potatoes, then while hot, rub them through a sieve.
Melt the butter or dripping and mix it with the potatoes; let cool.
Separate the yolks from the whites of the eggs and whisk the yolks.
Grate the lemon rind and add it along with the lemon juice and sugar to the potato mixture; mix well.
Whisk the egg whites with the salt until stiff, then gently fold into the potato mixture.
Bake and serve
Pour the mixture into a greased tin and bake at 350°F (175°C) for about 30 minutes.
Turn out onto a dish and serve very hot.
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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Potato + lemontop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,230 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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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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Lemon + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,227 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
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Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Provide the bulk and a soft, moist body for the pudding.
- Eggs
- Yolks enrich and bind, while whipped whites lighten the mixture and help it set.
- Butter or dripping
- Adds fat for richness and a tender, moist texture.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the pudding and helps it brown lightly in the oven.
- Lemon
- Rind adds aroma and juice adds brightness that cuts the richness.
The step that matters
Folding in the egg whites. Whites must be whisked until stiff and folded in gently. Stirring or beating them in would deflate the air bubbles that lift the pudding, leaving it dense.
Swap the potato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, sugar, lemon, butter):
- Asparagusfits better
- Leekfits better
- Shallotfits better
- Potatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, sugar, lemon, butter. 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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