Why it works: Parsley and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Potato Croquettes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the potatoes
Pare the potatoes and boil until barely tender.
Drain and shake over the fire until mealy, then mash until free of lumps.
Make the croquette mixture
Mix the mashed potatoes with parsley, onion juice, salt, nutmeg, and pepper.
Stir in the beaten egg yolk, butter, and cream.
Place the mixture in a small saucepan and stir constantly until steaming hot, then let it cool.
Form the mixture into cork-shaped croquettes.
Coat and fry
Coat each croquette with egg and breadcrumbs.
Fry in deep hot fat until golden brown.
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.
-
Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Parsley + nutmegtop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,062 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).
-
Nutmeg + peppertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together13,015 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
- Potatoes
- Provide the starchy base that holds the croquette together and gives a soft interior.
- Egg yolk
- Binds the mixture and adds richness to the soft filling.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richer flavor and a tender, moist texture.
- Cream
- Adds moisture and smoothness to the mashed potato mixture.
The step that matters
Heating the mixture until steaming hot. Heating the potato mixture with the egg yolk cooks the yolk and firms the mixture so it holds its shape when formed and fried. Stirring constantly prevents scorching on the pan bottom.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, parsley, nutmeg, pepper, egg, butter, cream):
- Spinachfits better
- Chivefits better
- Leekfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against potato, parsley, nutmeg, pepper, egg, butter, cream. 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
Potato Rolls78 recipes
Potato Chips53 recipes
Potato Biscuit32 recipes
Potato Snow23 recipesThe 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.