Why it works: Chicken and sesame match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and 939 recipes mention both. Both carry 2-furfurylthiol, which smells coffee, roasted. The science ↓
The recipe
4 servingsIngredients
Contains: tree nuts, 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.
Place the torn, washed and dried romaine and the fresh bean sprouts in a large salad bowl and toss to combine.
In a small bowl, stir the sweet and sour sauce with the ground ginger and ground black pepper until smooth.
Crush the cornflakes lightly in a zip-top bag with your hands, leaving some larger pieces.
Keep the shredded cooked chicken chilled until ready to use. Add it to the dressing and toss to coat evenly.
Add the dressed chicken to the romaine and bean sprouts and toss gently until everything is evenly coated.
Top the salad with the toasted sliced almonds, the crushed cornflakes, and the sesame seeds if using.
Serve right away so the cornflakes stay crisp.
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.
-
Chicken + sesametop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together939 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-furfurylthiol (coffee, roasted).
-
Lettuce + sesametop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together193 recipes
Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).
-
Ginger + sesametop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together1,531 recipes
Shared aroma: nonanal (fat, citrus).
-
Almond + sesametop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together203 recipes
Shared aroma: acetylpyrazine (roast).
-
Ginger + peppertop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together6,799 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the sesame
The recipe marks sesame as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sauce, ginger, lettuce, chicken, almond, pepper):
- Sesamethe original
- Cashew nutabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against sauce, ginger, lettuce, chicken, almond, pepper. 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).
The Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.