Name: Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients: Chiles; 3 pounds fresh Poblano chilies; Canola oil; Chile sauce; 1 lb. fresh Tomatillos, peel, remove stems; 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 1/4 teaspoons dried oregano; 1 tsp Kosher salt (add more to taste); 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper (add more to taste); 4 tablespoons cornstarch (dissolve in 4 tablespoons water, for thickening); Hot sauce, your favorite, optional (I used a bit of Cholula); Chicken and enchiladas; 4 boneless chicken breasts (you can also use bone-in chicken breasts or thighs); 3 tablespoons Olive oil or Canola Oil; Cajun Seasoning mix or Kosher salt and pepper; 20 small white corn tortillas (5-6 inch); Canola oil for frying; 1 lb. grated Mexican four-cheese blend (Kraft); Sour cream, for garnish; Cilantro for garnish, chopped and sprinkled, optional

Why it works: Garlic and oregano are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,756 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. 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.

Garlic + oreganotop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,756 recipes

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

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together25,665 recipes

Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
Clove + oreganotop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together556 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together17,451 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Oregano + olivetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,443 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-hexenal (green, leafy).

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 (canola oil, sauce, chicken, garlic, oregano, pepper, olive):

Cuminfits better
Thymefits better
Rosemaryfits better
Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against canola oil, sauce, chicken, garlic, oregano, pepper, olive. 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
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Corn Tortilla	1 medium flour (45g)	140
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
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
Cilantro	1 tbsp chopped fresh (1g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Sauce	not in our table	0
Water	not in our table	0
Enchilada	not in our table	0

Chicken Enchiladas