Once you successfully make a potion using alchemy table, the game remembers the effects for you. You only need to remember which effect you want in a potion.
Some ingredients seem to be stronger than others, Nirnroot vs. Deathbell vs. River Betty for instance with Damage Health.
Regardless, there should be a way to "favorites" the combinations you particularly like so that when you go back to the table you don't need to rediscover what you did the last time.
you can also buy/loot recipes and it adds immersion. and you can very easily discover attributes by eating an ingredient and when you create enough amount of potions with an ingredient it will tell you more attributes.
In the game I "know" the effects, but I end up not remembering many of the combinations. Recipes don't really exist for the combinations I'm talking about, like Deathbell, Riverbetty and Thistle [Damage health, Slow, Ravage Stamina]