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Jollyrogers' Chilaquiles

"This is a Mexican casserole that my Grandpa used to make every Thanksgiving and Christmas. The smell alone makes me feel like I am six years old and waiting for dinner to start. This recipe has been handed down from my Grandpa to my dad to me. The original recipe did not call for teaspoons or tablespoons, but with ounces and pounds. It can be made with or without chorizo. I prefer it with soy-based meatless chorizo substitute, which also makes it a good dish for vegetarians."

By allrecipes · From Open Recipes · 18 ingredients
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Why it works: Olive and tomato match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and 14,164 recipes mention both. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

The recipe

8 servings
Prep25 min
Cook35 min

Ingredients

Contains: milk, wheat (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)

Directions

Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.

  1. Heat the optional tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat. If using chorizo, add it and cook, breaking it up, until no pink remains and it reaches 160°F (71°C), about 6 minutes. Lift it out with a slotted spoon.

  2. Add the chopped onion to the pot and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for 1 minute.

  3. Whisk in the three cans of tomato sauce, the Mexican style hot tomato sauce, the water and 1/4 cup white vinegar. Stir in the cocoa powder, sugar, oregano and taco seasoning if using. Bring to a gentle simmer.

  4. Stir in the drained green chiles, sliced olives and the cooked chorizo. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring now and then.

  5. Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup white vinegar and the 1 tablespoon white vinegar, then taste and adjust seasoning. Keep the sauce warm over low heat.

  6. While the sauce simmers, heat the 1/4 cup vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

  7. Add the tortilla pieces in batches and fry, turning often, until crisp and golden, about 3 minutes per batch. Drain on paper towels.

  8. Just before serving, add the crisp tortilla pieces to the sauce and toss gently until coated but still slightly crunchy.

  9. Spoon into bowls and top with the crumbled cotija or feta cheese.

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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.

  1. Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together14,164 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Corn + tomatotop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together2,098 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  3. Pork + corntop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together1,068 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  4. Pork + tomatotop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together4,828 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  5. Onion + tomatotop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together20,622 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

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

Flavor stand-ins for the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, vinegar, pork, corn, flour, tomato, sauce):

  1. Capsicumbetter flavor fit
  2. Potatobetter flavor fit
  3. Cucumberabout as good a flavor fit
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, vinegar, pork, corn, flour, tomato, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).