Cold Sauce

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.

1. Butter + lemontop 16% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together41,227 recipes

   Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

2. Butter + eggtop 17% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together118,967 recipes

   Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

3. Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together98,233 recipes

   Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

4. Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together53,532 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

5. Egg + lemontop 19% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together44,316 recipes

   Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).

Sugar and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

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

What each ingredient does

Butter

Adds richness and a smooth, creamy body to the sauce.

Egg white

Adds body and helps the sauce hold a light, smooth texture.

Sugar

Provides sweetness and helps give the butter a smooth, creamy base.

Lemon juice

Adds acidity that brightens the sweetness and richness.

Swap the lemon

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, butter, egg):

1. Vanillafits better
2. Lemonthe original
3. Raisinfits about as well
4. Figfits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, butter, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.