Name: Green Chili, Chicken and Bacon Mac and Cheese
Yield: 6-8 Servings
Ingredients: 1/2 pound dry small pasta, I used elbow; 1 stick unsalted butter; 1/2 cup all purpose flour; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; 1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper; 2 cups milk, I used skim; 2 cups finely shredded mild cheddar cheese; two 4 ounce cans diced green chilies; 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken; 2 cups cooked, crumbled bacon pieces (about 1 pound cooked); 1/4 cup mild salsa verde

Why it works: Pasta and flour match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and 659 recipes mention both. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓

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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.

Pasta + flourtop 5% of all pairs

Aroma overlapstrong

Mentioned together659 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter + milktop 7% of all pairs

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together81,283 recipes

Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
Butter + cheddar cheesetop 8% of all pairs

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together2,436 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Milk + cheddar cheesetop 11% of all pairs

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together1,964 recipes

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

Aroma overlapmoderate

Mentioned together1,024 recipes

Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).

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

Green Chili, Chicken and Bacon Mac and Cheese