Name: Black Beans in Mango Sauce
Ingredients: 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil; 2 cups minced red onion; 1 tbsp minced garlic; 1 3-inch jalapeno pepper, minced; 1 1/2 tbsp minced fresh ginger; 1 1/2 tsp cumin; 1 1/2 tsp salt; 3 15-oz cans of black beans, drained; 6 tbsp lime juice; 2 large ripe mangoes, minced; black pepper to taste; minced fresh cilantro

Why it works: Cumin and beans match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,188 recipes. Both carry linalool, which smells floral, citrus. 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.

Cumin + beanstop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,188 recipes

Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Garlic + cumintop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,082 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Jalapeno + cumintop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together688 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Olive + garlictop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together25,665 recipes

Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

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

What each ingredient does

Black beans: Provide the bulk and body of the sauce, giving it a creamy, substantial texture.
Mangoes: Add sweetness and fruity aroma that balance the spice and acidity.
Lime juice: Adds acidity that brightens the flavors and balances the sweetness of the mango.
Red onion: Provides savory sweetness and aromatic depth when sauteed.
Olive oil: Carries the aromatics and conducts heat so they cook evenly without sticking.

The step that matters

Saute the aromatics before adding the beans. Cooking onion, garlic, ginger and chili until softened and fragrant develops their flavor. Adding beans too early leaves the raw aromatics harsh and uneven in the sauce.

Swap the jalapeno

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, onion, garlic, pepper, ginger, cumin, beans):

Turmericfits better
Corianderfits better
Oreganofits better
Jalapenothe original

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, onion, garlic, pepper, ginger, cumin, beans. 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
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Black Bean	1/2 cup canned (120g) drained	114
Red Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Lime	juice of 1 lime (44ml)	11
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Cumin	1 tsp ground (2.1g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Ginger	1 tsp grated fresh (2g)	2
Cilantro	1 tbsp chopped fresh (1g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Black Beans in Mango Sauce