Name: Spicy Chicken and Chile Taco Dip Recipe
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
Ingredients: 1 teaspoon kosher salt , plus more as needed; 1/2 teaspoon ground oregano; 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper , plus more as needed; 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 2 medium Anaheim chiles , cored, seeded, and medium dice; 2 medium poblano chiles , cored, seeded, and medium dice; 1 medium serrano chile , stemmed and small dice; 1 medium white onion , medium dice; 3 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped; 2 medium Roma tomatoes , cored, seeded, and medium dice; 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans , drained and rinsed; 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (about 6 ounces); 8 ounces cream cheese , cut into small pieces; 1/3 cup sour cream; 3 tablespoons Mexican-style hot sauce , such as Cholula or Tapatío, plus more for serving; Tortilla chips , for serving

Why it works: Oregano and cumin match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 983 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

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.

Oregano + cumintop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together983 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Cumin + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,082 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Oregano + tomatotop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,767 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-hexenal (green, leafy).
Oregano + garlictop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,756 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

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

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (oregano, pepper, cumin, chicken, onion, garlic, tomato):

Corianderfits better
Thymefits better
Basilfits better
Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against oregano, pepper, cumin, chicken, onion, garlic, tomato. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Tortilla Chip	1 medium flour (45g)	140
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Black Bean	1/2 cup canned (120g) drained	114
Cheese	1 oz (28g) cheddar	113
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Cream Cheese	1 oz (28g)	99
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Cumin	1 tsp ground (2.1g)	8
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Oregano	1 tsp dried (1.8g)	5
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Spicy Chicken and Chile Taco Dip Recipe