Why it works: Chicken and liver work together. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and 383 recipes mention both. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
The recipe
Serves 4Ingredients
Contains: milk, tree nuts (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 a dry frying pan over medium heat, add the chorizo chunks and fry for 4 to 5 minutes, turning, until crisp and the oil has rendered. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add the walnut halves to the same pan and toast for 2 to 3 minutes, shaking the pan, until fragrant. Remove and set aside.
Dry the chicken livers on kitchen paper. Melt the butter in the pan over medium-high heat, add the livers and cook for 2 to 3 minutes per side until browned outside.
Cook the livers until they reach 165°F (74°C) in the thickest part, about 1 to 2 more minutes, then transfer them to a plate.
Whisk the walnut oil and white wine vinegar together in a small bowl to make a dressing.
Put the salad leaves and chopped parsley in a large bowl. Add the chorizo, walnuts and livers, then drizzle over the dressing and toss gently to combine.
Divide the salad among four plates and serve while the livers are still warm.
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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Chicken + livertop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together383 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Butter + white winetop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together5,039 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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White wine + vinegartop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,123 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Parsley + walnuttop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together865 recipes
Shared aroma: sabinene (woody, terpenic).
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Chicken + white winetop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together1,900 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl isobutyrate (fruity, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the walnut
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (butter, chicken, liver, parsley, white wine, vinegar):
- Peasabout as good a flavor fit
- Beansabout as good a flavor fit
- Walnutthe original
- Sesameabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against butter, chicken, liver, parsley, white wine, vinegar. 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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