Why it works: Beans and squid work together. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and 21 recipes mention both. Both carry 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine, which smells cocoa, roasted. The science ↓
The recipe
Serves 4Ingredients
Contains: wheat (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.
Heat the 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chorizo sausages and cook 8 to 10 minutes, turning, until cooked through to 160°F (71°C) inside. Transfer to a board and slice into coins.
Drain the canned beans and put them in the same pan with the chicken stock and half the smoked paprika. Simmer over medium-low heat for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Return the sliced chorizo to the beans and warm through for 2 minutes. Season with a little of the salt and pepper, then keep warm over very low heat.
Rinse the squid, pat dry, and cut the bodies into rings and halve any tentacles. Mix the flour with the remaining smoked paprika, the rest of the salt and the pepper in a bowl.
Toss the squid in the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess. Heat the 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a clean large frying pan over high heat.
Fry the squid in batches for 1 to 2 minutes, turning once, until opaque and just cooked through at 145°F (63°C). Do not overcrowd the pan.
Cut the lemon into wedges. Divide the rocket among four plates, spoon the chorizo and beans over it, top with the squid, and serve with lemon wedges to squeeze over.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Beans + squidtop 10% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together21 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).
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Pepper + lemontop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together27,039 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Olive + chickentop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together10,796 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid hexyl ester (sweet, green).
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Beans + olivetop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together3,080 recipes
Shared aroma: trans,trans-2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
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Olive + lemontop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together10,849 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beans, olive, chicken, flour, pepper, squid):
- Lemonthe original
- Avocadoabout as good a flavor fit
- Limeabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against beans, olive, chicken, flour, pepper, squid. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
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