Name: Sesame Noodle Salad with Tofu Recipe
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: 2 to 4 servings
Ingredients: 8 ounces dried soba or udon noodles; 2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 8 ounces extra-firm tofu , cut into 1/2-inch cubes; Kosher salt; Freshly ground black pepper; 2 tablespoons finely chopped peeled fresh ginger; 2 1/2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil , plus more as needed; 2 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped; 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes; 1/4 cup soy sauce; 2 tablespoons granulated sugar; 2 medium scallions , thinly sliced (white and light green parts only); 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 1 medium lemon); 1 medium red bell pepper , cored, seeded, and cut into thin strips; 1/2 medium English cucumber , halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices

Why it works: Tofu and sesame 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.

Tofu + sesametop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together250 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ginger + clovetop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together6,038 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Ginger + sesametop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,531 recipes

Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).
Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together17,451 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Sesame + garlictop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,000 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

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

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tofu, pepper, ginger, sesame, garlic, sauce, sugar):

Turmericfits better
Cuminfits better
Corianderfits better
Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against tofu, pepper, ginger, sesame, garlic, sauce, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Sesame	1 tbsp (14g)	120
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Tofu	100g firm	76
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Cucumber	1/2 cup sliced (52g)	16
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12
Soy Sauce	1 tbsp (15ml)	9
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Ginger	1 tsp grated fresh (2g)	2
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Sesame Noodle Salad with Tofu Recipe