Why it works: Chicken and lime are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and 1,581 recipes mention both. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
The recipe
Serves 4Ingredients
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.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced onion and cook 4 minutes until softened. Add the minced garlic and curry powder and stir 1 minute.
Add the chopped scallions and cook 1 more minute. Remove from heat and stir in the shredded cooked chicken, chopped cilantro, lime zest, lime juice, salt and pepper. Let cool for 5 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Lay one phyllo sheet on a clean work surface and brush it lightly with melted butter. Top with a second sheet and brush it with butter as well.
Sprinkle a thin layer of panko or plain dry breadcrumbs over the buttered phyllo. Spoon about a quarter of the chicken filling along one short edge, leaving a border.
Fold in the long sides, then roll the phyllo up tightly around the filling. Place the roll seam side down on the baking sheet and repeat with the remaining phyllo and filling to make four rolls.
Brush the tops of the rolls with any remaining melted butter. Bake 20 to 25 minutes until deep golden and crisp.
Let the rolls rest 5 minutes on the pan before slicing or serving.
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.
-
Chicken + limetop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together1,581 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together29,030 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Lime + peppertop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together3,491 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Olive + garlictop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together23,449 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
-
Garlic + chickentop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together10,839 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine (roasted, nutty).
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, garlic, chicken, lime, pepper, butter, phyllo dough):
- Tomatobetter flavor fit
- Capsicumabout as good a flavor fit
- Potatoabout as good a flavor fit
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against olive, garlic, chicken, lime, pepper, butter, phyllo dough. 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).
The Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.