Name: Black Bean and Cucumber Salad
Ingredients: 1 can black beans (drained and rinsed); 1 large cucumber (peeled and diced); 1 tomato (diced); 1/2 green pepper (diced); 1 stalk celery (chopped); 1/2 small red onion (chopped); 1/8 cup olive oil; 1/8 cup balsamic vinegar; salt and pepper

Why it works: Tomato and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Black Bean and Cucumber Salad

Timeat least one hour

Ingredients

Directions

Mix all ingredients in a medium size bowl.
Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

361Calories

12 gProtein

15 gFat

47 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 10 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Black Bean	1/2 cup canned (120g) drained	114
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Cucumber	1/2 cup sliced (52g)	16
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

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

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

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.

Tomato + olivetop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together15,539 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Beans + tomatotop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,713 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Cucumber + tomatotop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,405 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Tomato + celerytop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,377 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Pepper + celerytop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together16,012 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

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

What each ingredient does

Black beans: Provide the main body and bulk of the salad, with a soft, creamy texture.
Cucumber: Adds cool, crisp moisture and a fresh texture to the salad.
Tomato: Adds juiciness and acidity that brightens the other vegetables.
Olive oil: Adds fat that carries flavour and gives the dressing a smooth mouthfeel.
Balsamic vinegar: Adds acidity and sweetness that season the salad and soften the vegetables slightly.

The step that matters

Refrigerate for at least one hour. Chilling lets the vinegar and oil dressing soak into the beans and vegetables, so the flavours blend. Cucumber and tomato also release some liquid during this rest, which mixes into the dressing.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beans, cucumber, tomato, pepper, celery, olive, vinegar):

Capsicumfits better
Lettucefits better
Mustardfits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beans, cucumber, tomato, pepper, celery, olive, vinegar. 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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Black Bean and Cucumber Salad