Name: Mexican Cheese Dip I
Ingredients: 10 oz Pepper jack cheese; grated; 1 med Onion; Butter to cook the onion; 1 tsp Garlic; crushed; Tablespoons of flour; 1 can Tomato paste; 1 cup Whipping cream

Why it works: Onion and garlic 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 ↓

Mexican Cheese Dip I

Ingredients

Directions

Cook the onions in a Teflon-coated cast-iron pot until browning or slightly burning.
When the onions are acceptable, add the flour, garlic, cream, and tomato paste.
When that becomes soft and hot, gradually add the cheese until bubbly.
Serve with tortilla chips.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

797Calories

23 gProtein

28 gFat

113 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 8 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Cheese	1 oz (28g) cheddar	113
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Cream	1 tbsp (15ml) heavy	51
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
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.

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.

Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Garlic + tomatotop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together14,076 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Pepper + tomatotop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,923 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Pepper + garlictop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together27,090 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together41,516 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

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

What each ingredient does

Pepper jack cheese: Melts into the dip to give it its main body, creamy texture and savory flavor.
Onion: Browning the onion adds sweet, deeper flavor to the dip.
Flour: Thickens the cream and tomato mixture so the dip holds together.
Whipping cream: Adds richness and moisture, helping the cheese melt smoothly.
Tomato paste: Adds concentrated tomato flavor, acidity and color to the dip.

The step that matters

Adding the cheese gradually. Cheese added all at once or over high heat can clump or turn grainy and oily. Adding it slowly over gentle heat lets the proteins and fats melt into a smooth, stable emulsion with the cream.

Swap the tomato

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, cheese, onion, butter, garlic, flour, cream):

Chivefits better
Potatofits better
Spinachfits better
Tomatothe original

Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, cheese, onion, butter, garlic, flour, cream. 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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Mexican Cheese Dip I