Name: Filet ‘o’ Tofu Sandwiches
Ingredients: 1 lb medium-firm or silken tofu, cut into 8 equally-sized slabs; 1 cup water; juice of one half a lemon; 4 tbsp nutritional yeast; 2 tsp salt; 1 tsp dried kelp powder; 1/4 tsp dried dill; 2 cups pulverized corn flakes cereal or crackers of your choice + 2 tsp salt; 1 cup whole wheat flour; 2 tbsp oil; 8 white hamburger buns; 4 slices vegan "cheese", American-style; 1/4 cup vegan mayonnaise; 1/8 cup green relish; 3 tbsp fresh cilantro, minced; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon; 4 tbsp ground chili powder; 6 cloves garlic, minced; 1/2 cup raisins; 2 medium white onions, chopped; 1 cup crushed corn chips; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 2 cups tomato sauce; 1 cup sliced black olives; 2 oz. baking chocolate, melted

Why it works: Lemon and dill match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 976 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.

Lemon + dilltop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together976 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Tofu + kelptop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together11 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Corn + wheattop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together465 recipes

Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
Tofu + flourtop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together350 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Tofu + wheattop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together48 recipes

Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).

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

What each ingredient does

Tofu: Forms the sandwich filet and absorbs the lemon and yeast marinade for flavour.
Nutritional yeast: Adds a savoury, cheesy flavour to the tofu marinade.
Flour: Dry coating that helps the crumb layer stick and promotes browning.
Corn flakes cereal or crackers: Forms a crisp, golden crust on the outside of the tofu.
Vegan mayonnaise: Adds fat and creaminess to the sandwich spread.
Vegan cheese: Adds melty, creamy richness that complements the tofu.

The step that matters

Dip quickly in the marinade. Brief dipping lets the coating stay dry enough to crisp in the oven; soaking makes the crust soggy and can cause it to slough off during baking.

Swap the lemon

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tofu, kelp, dill, corn, wheat, flour, cheese):

Avocadofits better
Limefits better
Lemonthe original
Coconutfits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against tofu, kelp, dill, corn, wheat, flour, cheese. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Beef	100g cooked	250
Chocolate	1 oz (28g) semisweet	155
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Cheese	1 oz (28g) cheddar	113
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Corn	1/2 cup kernels (82g)	77
Tofu	100g firm	76
Grape	1/2 cup (76g)	62
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12
Cumin	1 tsp ground (2.1g)	8
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Cinnamon	1 tsp ground (2.6g)	6
Dill	5 sprigs fresh (1g) / 1 tsp dried	4
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Olive	1 large (4g)	4
Cilantro	1 tbsp chopped fresh (1g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Water	not in our table	0
Kelp	not in our table	0
Relish	not in our table	0

Filet ‘o’ Tofu Sandwiches