Why it works: Celery and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,810 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Potato Croquettes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
In a bowl, mix the hot riced potatoes, celery salt, butter, cayenne pepper, salt, onion juice, pepper, and chopped parsley until well combined.
Beat in the egg until the mixture is smooth.
Shape the mixture into cylinders.
Coat and fry
Roll each cylinder in breadcrumbs, then dip in egg, and roll in breadcrumbs again.
Fry the croquettes in deep fat until golden brown.
Drain on paper towels, garnish, and serve.
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.
-
Celery + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,810 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Potato + parsleytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,855 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Celery + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together16,012 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Hot riced potatoes
- Form the bulk of the croquette and give a soft, tender interior.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, contributing moisture and a smoother texture to the filling.
- Egg
- Binds the mixture so the croquettes hold their shape, and the coating egg helps breadcrumbs adhere.
- Breadcrumbs
- Form a crisp outer coating that browns during frying.
The step that matters
Coating and frying the croquettes. The egg and breadcrumb coating must be fully applied so the shape holds, and the croquettes must be fried until golden brown, which gives crisp browning and a hot interior. Frying at too low a temperature lets oil soak in and makes them greasy.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, celery, butter, pepper, parsley, egg):
- Carrotfits better
- Chivefits better
- Leekfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against potato, celery, butter, pepper, parsley, 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.
More potato croquettes recipes
You might also like
The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.

Cream of Celery Soup113 recipes
Potato Rolls78 recipes
Potato Chips53 recipes
Potato Biscuit32 recipes