Name: Grilled Flatbreads with Caramelized Onions, Sausage, and Manchego Cheese
Yield: Makes 12 appetizer servings
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 2 large red onions (1 1/2 to 1 3/4 pounds), halved, thinly sliced; 1/2 cup dry red wine (such as Zinfandel); 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar; 1 teaspoon sugar; 3/4 pound sweet Italian sausages (about 4 links), casings removed; or 1 pound purchased fresh pizza dough; Nonstick olive oil spray; 2 cups (packed) coarsely shredded Manchego cheese,* divided

Why it works: Manchego and cheese work together. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 93 recipes. Both carry delta-decalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓

Grilled Flatbreads with Caramelized Onions, Sausage, and Manchego Cheese

Makes 12 appetizer servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large red onions (1 1/2 to 1 3/4 pounds), halved, thinly sliced
1/2 cup dry red wine (such as Zinfandel)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 pound sweet Italian sausages (about 4 links), casings removed
or 1 pound purchased fresh pizza dough
Nonstick olive oil spray
2 cups (packed) coarsely shredded Manchego cheese,* divided

Directions

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

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

654Calories

20 gProtein

50 gFat

26 gCarbs

Counts 7 of 9 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 7 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Sausage	100g cooked	301
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Cheese	1 oz (28g) cheddar	113
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Red Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Wine	2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)	25
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Pizza	not in our table	0
Manchego	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 epicurious. 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.

Manchego + cheesetop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together93 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
Onion + olivetop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together29,779 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Red wine + vinegartop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together575 recipes

Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
Vinegar + olivetop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together12,297 recipes

Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, fruity).
Olive + manchegotop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together75 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl butyrate (apple, fruity).

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

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (red wine, vinegar, sugar, olive, manchego, cheese):

Tomatofits better
Capsicumfits better
Mustardfits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against red wine, vinegar, sugar, olive, manchego, cheese. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

Like knowing why a recipe works?

The 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.