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Creamy Cilantro Salad Dressing

"This is my best take on the dressing that is used in the El Torito restaurants in southern California. Be sure to toss some roasted pepitas and crumbled Cotija or Manchengo cheese on top of your salad for the full effect!"

By allrecipes · From Open Recipes · 11 ingredients
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Creamy Cilantro Salad Dressing

Why it works: Pepper and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,451 recipes. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. The science ↓

Creamy Cilantro Salad Dressing

4 servings
Prep15 min

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

330Calories
14 gProtein
28 gFat
5 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 12 ingredients. The other 3 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Cheese1 oz (28g) cheddar113
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Cilantro1 tbsp chopped fresh (1g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Pumpkinnot in our table0
Seednot in our table0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By allrecipes. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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.

  1. Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together17,451 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  2. Pepper + garlictop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,090 recipes

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

  3. Red wine + clovetop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together849 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).

  4. Clove + garlictop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together11,368 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  5. Canola oil + garlictop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together979 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

Swap the pumpkin

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (canola oil, red wine, vinegar, cheese, pepper, clove, garlic):

  1. Plumfits better
  2. Limefits better
  3. Cherryfits better
  4. Pumpkinthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against canola oil, red wine, vinegar, cheese, pepper, clove, garlic. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.