Why it works: Garlic and onion match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 29,058 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓
Mongolian Beef Sandwiches
Ingredients
Directions
Marinate
Marinate the steak in a bowl with oils, soy sauce, wine, garlic, scallions and black pepper. Let stand at least 4 hours refrigerated.
Drain the beef in another bowl and reserve 12 larger slices for satays.
Cook and serve
In a hot wok, coat with oil and stir-fry the sliced onions and minced serrano chiles.
Add the beef and cook until rare.
Add the vegetables. Check for seasoning.
Serve with pita bread and black bean aioli.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 14 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Beef | 100g cooked | 250 |
| Sesame | 1 tbsp (14g) | 120 |
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Pita Bread | 1 slice (30g) white | 79 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Red Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Red Bell Pepper | 1 medium (119g) | 31 |
| Green Bell Pepper | 1 medium (119g) | 31 |
| Wine | 2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml) | 25 |
| Carrot | 1 medium (61g) | 25 |
| White Cabbage | 1 cup shredded (89g) | 22 |
| Soy Sauce | 1 tbsp (15ml) | 9 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Garlic | 1 clove (3g) | 4 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.
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.
-
Garlic + oniontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together29,058 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Sesame + oniontop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,192 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
-
Canola oil + sesametop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together201 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
-
Sesame + garlictop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,000 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Pepper + cabbagetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,081 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Flank steak
- Provides the meat that is sliced thin and cooked quickly until rare, so it stays tender.
- Soy sauce
- Adds salty, savory depth to the marinade and helps season the beef.
- Garlic
- Adds pungent aroma that mellows and sweetens as it cooks.
- Red onions
- Add sweetness and soften as they stir-fry with the chiles.
- Serrano chiles
- Add heat and a sharp, fresh aroma to the stir-fry.
The step that matters
Cook the beef until rare. Thin slices cook in moments, and overcooking toughens the muscle fibers and makes flank steak chewy. Removing it at rare keeps it tender.
Swap the cabbage
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (canola oil, sesame, sauce, wine, garlic, pepper, onion):
- Broccolifits better
- Spinachfits better
- Shallotfits better
- Cabbagethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against canola oil, sesame, sauce, wine, garlic, pepper, onion. 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.
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