Name: Tuna Wellingtons with Pimento Cheese Sauce
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 25 min
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients: 1 egg; 1 (6 ounce) can canned tuna; 1/4 cup mayonnaise; 2 tablespoons diced dill pickles; 2 tablespoons chopped pimento; 1 tablespoon chopped green bell pepper; 2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted; 3 teaspoons baking powder; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/3 cup vegetable shortening; 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese; 2 tablespoons chopped pimento; 2/3 cup milk; 3 tablespoons butter; 3 tablespoons diced green bell pepper; 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 1 1/2 cups milk; 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese; 2 tablespoons minced pimento; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Why it works: Dill and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,630 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. 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.

Dill + peppertop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,630 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together81,283 recipes

Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Cheddar cheese + buttertop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,436 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Cheddar cheese + milktop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,964 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together124,287 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

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

Swap the dill

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, pepper, flour, cheddar cheese, milk, butter):

Nutmegfits better
Parsleyfits better
Cinnamonfits better
Dillthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against egg, pepper, flour, cheddar cheese, milk, butter. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Salmon	100g cooked	208
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Vegetable	1 tbsp (14g)	120
Cheddar Cheese	1 oz (28g)	113
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Green Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Dill	5 sprigs fresh (1g) / 1 tsp dried	4
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Pimento	not in our table	0

Tuna Wellingtons with Pimento Cheese Sauce