Name: Salsa I
Ingredients: 2 large ripe tomatoes, diced; 1 medium onion, chopped; 1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced; 6 to 10 small green chilies or 2 to 4 jalapeno peppers, fresh is best

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 ↓

Salsa I

Timetwo hours

Ingredients

2 large ripe tomatoes, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced
6 to 10 small green chilies or 2 to 4 jalapeno peppers, fresh is best

Directions

Prepare

Chop vegetables, removing seeds from chilies.
Combine all ingredients and chill for two hours before serving.

Serve

Try this on any meat, fish or egg dish.
Our favorite is melted Monterey Jack cheese spooned onto floured tortilla halves and topped with this.
Roll them up and attack!

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

74Calories

3 gProtein

0 gFat

17 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 4 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Jalapeno Pepper	1 pepper (14g)	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).
Tomato + garlictop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together14,076 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Garlic + jalapenotop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,700 recipes

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

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together20,633 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Clove + garlictop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together11,368 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

Tomatoes: Provide the fresh bulk and juiciness that forms the base of the salsa.
Onion: Adds sharp, pungent flavor and crisp texture to the salsa.
Garlic: Contributes pungent aroma and savory depth.
Chilies or jalapeno peppers: Supply the heat and fresh, grassy pepper flavor.