Name: Warm Tofu with Spicy Garlic Sauce
Yield: Makes 8 (as part of a Korean meal) servings
Ingredients: 1 (14-to 18-ounces) package soft tofu (not silken); 1 teaspoon chopped garlic; 1/4 cup chopped scallion; 2 teaspoons sesame seeds,; and crushed with side of a heavy knife; 3 tablespoons soy sauce; 1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil; 1 teaspoon coarse Korean hot red-pepper flakes; 1/2 teaspoon sugar

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 ↓

Warm Tofu with Spicy Garlic Sauce

Makes 8 (as part of a Korean meal) servings

Ingredients

1 (14-to 18-ounces) package soft tofu (not silken)
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1/4 cup chopped scallion
2 teaspoons sesame seeds,
and crushed with side of a heavy knife
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
1 teaspoon coarse Korean hot red-pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon sugar

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

258Calories

9 gProtein

18 gFat

16 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 5 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Sesame	1 tbsp (14g)	120
Tofu	100g firm	76
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Soy Sauce	1 tbsp (15ml)	9
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By epicurious. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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).
Garlic + sesametop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,000 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Garlic + peppertop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together27,090 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Tofu + garlictop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together604 recipes

Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
Sauce + sugartop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,147 recipes

Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

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

Swap the garlic

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

Gingerfits better
Turmericfits better
Garlicthe original
Cuminfits about as well

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

Like knowing why a recipe works?

The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.