Name: Asian Tofu Salad
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons canola oil; 2 tablespoons rice vinegar; 1 tablespoon honey; 2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce; 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil; 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger; ½ teaspoon salt; 1 x 14-ounce package extra-firm, water-packed tofu, rinsed, patted dry and cut into 1-inch cubes; 8 cups mixed salad greens; 2 medium carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise and sliced; 1 large cucumber, chopped

Why it works: Sesame and tofu match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 250 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. 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.

Sesame + tofutop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together250 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Rice + sesametop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together984 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Sesame + gingertop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,531 recipes

Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).
Canola oil + sesametop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together201 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ginger + tofutop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together284 recipes

Shared aroma: methyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).

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

What each ingredient does

Extra-firm tofu: Provides the protein-rich base; its low moisture lets it brown well in the skillet.
Canola oil: Forms the fat base of the dressing, carrying flavour and giving it body.
Rice vinegar: Adds bright acidity that balances the honey and soy sauce in the dressing.
Honey: Adds sweetness that rounds out the sharp vinegar and salty soy sauce.
Mixed salad greens: Form the bulk of the salad and add fresh, crisp texture.

The step that matters

Browning the tofu. Tofu must be patted dry and cooked in a hot pan without crowding, so its surface browns rather than steams. Turning it at intervals lets every side brown evenly.

Swap the ginger

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (canola oil, rice, vinegar, honey, sauce, sesame, tofu):

Turmericfits about as well
Gingerthe original
Garlicfits about as well
Corianderfits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against canola oil, rice, vinegar, honey, sauce, sesame, tofu. 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
Sesame	1 tbsp (14g)	120
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Tofu	100g firm	76
Honey	1 tbsp (21g)	64
Carrot	1 medium (61g)	25
Cucumber	1/2 cup sliced (52g)	16
Soy Sauce	1 tbsp (15ml)	9
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Ginger	1 tsp grated fresh (2g)	2
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Salad	not in our table	0

Asian Tofu Salad

Asian Tofu Salad

Ingredients

Directions

Make the dressing

Cook the tofu

Assemble and serve

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)