Why it works: Salmon and miso work together. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and 42 recipes mention both. Both carry acetic acid, which smells sour, vinegar. The science ↓
The recipe
Serves 6Ingredients
Contains: soy, fish, sesame (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.
Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan over medium heat, stirring, until golden, about 2 to 3 minutes. Tip them into a bowl and set aside.
In a small saucepan, combine the dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, saké, dashi or fish stock, golden caster sugar, miso paste and lemon juice. Warm over medium heat, whisking until the sugar and miso dissolve, then simmer 3 minutes until slightly syrupy.
Bring a pan of water to the boil, add the asparagus and cook 2 minutes until just tender. Drain well and set aside.
Preheat the grill to high and line a baking tray with foil. Place the salmon fillets skin side down on the tray and brush with about half of the sauce.
Grill the salmon 8 to 10 minutes until the flesh is opaque and flakes easily, reaching 145°F (63°C) in the thickest part. Brush with a little more sauce and sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds.
Toss the asparagus with the remaining sauce and grill alongside the salmon for 2 to 3 minutes until lightly charred at the tips.
Serve the salmon and asparagus with the lemon slices on the side.
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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Salmon + misotop 6% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together42 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Sesame + misotop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together121 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
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Asparagus + sesametop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together73 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).
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Salmon + fishtop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together1,058 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Asparagus + lemontop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together704 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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 (salmon, asparagus, sesame, sugar, sauce, fish, miso):
- Lemonthe original
- Avocadoabout as good a flavor fit
- Pumpkinabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against salmon, asparagus, sesame, sugar, sauce, fish, miso. 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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