A chemical recipe (also known as a potion formula) is a symbolic representation of the brewing of a potion and/or the chemical reactions that take place in it. Chemical recipes may be presented in two different ways: by means of a table combining Alchemistic symbols and basic instructions; and through an equation, with ingredients given on the left-hand side and the product entities on the right-hand side. The latter is the most simple way (the former being compared to an "abstruse magic incantation" by some authors) and thus is used in the teaching of beginner Potions students.