What Goes With Potatoes? 30 Best Flavour Pairings

Potatoes go best with butter, cream, garlic, rosemary, leek and melting cheeses like Gruyère, plus vinegar, mustard and smoky paprika for contrast. Their mild, earthy starch soaks up fat and seasoning, so rich, salty, herby and tangy partners all shine.

Herbs

• Rosemary — its piney aroma pops against crisp, starchy roast potatoes.
• Thyme — earthy and woody, it flatters potato's mild starch in roasts and gratins.
• Dill — grassy and fragrant, it brightens buttery new potatoes and potato salad.
• Sage — crisped in brown butter, it is perfect with potato gnocchi and roasts.
• Chives — mild, oniony snips finish mash, jacket potatoes and potato salad.

Spices

• Smoked paprika — smoky sweetness that coats potatoes, as in Spanish patatas bravas.
• Turmeric — earthy, golden spice for Indian dishes like aloo gobi and bombay potatoes.
• Nutmeg — a pinch of sweet warmth makes mash and gratin taste richer.
• Curry leaf — sizzled with mustard seed, it perfumes the spiced potato filling of masala dosa.

Aromatics

• Garlic — potatoes soak up its flavour and mellow its bite in mash and roasties.
• Leek — sweet allium and soft starch make the classic leek and potato soup.
• Onion — sweet, sharp onion seasons potato in hash, rösti and soups.
• Scallion — fresh, green bite that lifts mashed potato, as in Irish champ.

Dairy & Cheese

• Butter — rich fat coats every starchy bite, the soul of mash and new potatoes.
• Cream — its fat softens and carries potato's mild flavour in a gratin.
• Sour cream — cool tang that cuts through starch on jacket potatoes and latkes.
• Gruyère — melts into nutty, savoury richness in gratins and tartiflette-style bakes.
• Parmesan — salty umami that turns roast potatoes and wedges golden and moreish.

Sauces & Condiments

• Mayonnaise — its fat and tang coat potato in potato salad and Belgian fries.
• Vinegar — sharp acid cuts through fried potato's oil, as with salt-and-vinegar chips.
• Mustard — sharp heat brightens the starch in potato salad dressings.
• Tamarind — sweet-sour tang that cuts potato's starch in Indian chaat.

Vegetables & Sides

• Kale — starchy potato softens kale's bitterness in soups like Portuguese caldo verde.
• Spinach — grassy, mineral greens balance potato in Indian saag aloo.
• Peas — sweet pops of green that brighten potato in curries and samosas.
• Tomato — its acid cuts the starch in stews and spicy bravas sauce.

Proteins

• Ribeye — potato soaks up the steak's fat and juices, the classic steakhouse side.
• Bacon — salty, smoky crunch against soft potato in hash, salads and jackets.
• Lamb shoulder — potatoes roasted beneath it drink in the rendered lamb fat.
• Cod — a neutral, starchy partner that lets flaky cod shine, from fish and chips to fish pie.

Classic combos

• Potato + butter + cream + nutmeg — silky French-style mash or a rich gratin dauphinois.
• Potato + leek + chicken stock — leek and potato soup, or chilled vichyssoise.
• Potato + smoked paprika + tomato + garlic mayo — Spanish patatas bravas.
• Potato + kale + chorizo + garlic — Portuguese caldo verde, a hearty green soup.
• Potato + cod + vinegar + salt — fish and chips, with the vinegar cutting through the fried batter.
• Potato + mustard seed + turmeric + curry leaf — the spiced potato filling of South Indian masala dosa.

Pairings to avoid

• Broccoli on its own — mild brassica and mild starch sit fine together but add no contrast, so bring in cheese, lemon or chili.
• Overworking mash — beating or blending potatoes ruptures their starch cells and makes mash gluey, so mash gently.
• Waxy potatoes for mash — waxy types stay dense and pasty; use floury potatoes like Russet or Maris Piper for fluffy mash and roasties.
• Too little salt — starchy potatoes taste flat when underseasoned, so salt the cooking water well.