Name: Easiest Layer Dip
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Yield: 1 8x8-inch dish
Ingredients: 1 (16 ounce) can refried beans; 1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning; 1 (16 ounce) container sour cream; 1 (16 ounce) jar salsa (such as Newman's Own® medium or hot); 2 cups shredded Mexican-style cheese blend, or more to taste

Why it works: Beans and cheese work together. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 741 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Easiest Layer Dip

1 8x8-inch dish

Prep10 min

Cook10 min

Ingredients

1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning
1 (16 ounce) container sour cream
1 (16 ounce) jar salsa (such as Newman's Own® medium or hot)
2 cups shredded Mexican-style cheese blend, or more to taste

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

235Calories

25 gProtein

10 gFat

11 gCarbs

Counts 3 of 5 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 3 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Cheese	1 oz (28g) cheddar	113
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Bean	not in our table	0
Taco	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By allrecipes. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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.

Beans + cheesetop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together741 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Cream + cheesetop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,655 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Beans + creamtop 24% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,341 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the beans

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, cheese):

Walnutfits about as well
Beansthe original
Pistachiofits about as well
Almondfits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against cream, cheese. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

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