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Sauce

Hot Mustard Sauce

A thickened mustard sauce made with dry mustard, sugar, cider vinegar, eggs, and butter.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Cider and vinegar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,431 recipes. Both carry 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol, which smells smoky, clove. The science ↓

Hot Mustard Sauce

Ingredients

Directions

Make the base

  1. Combine mustard and sugar in the top of a double boiler, then add vinegar.

  2. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well.

  3. Cook until thick.

Finish and serve

  1. Remove from heat and beat in butter with a wire whisk.

  2. Serve chilled.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

235Calories
7 gProtein
17 gFat
14 gCarbs

Counts 5 of 6 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 5 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Mustard1 tsp (5g) yellow3
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Cidernot in our table0

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

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

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.

  1. Cider + vinegartop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,431 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).

  2. Mustard + vinegartop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together14,067 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  3. Mustard + cidertop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together1,414 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  4. Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together20,806 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

  5. Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together118,967 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

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

What each ingredient does

Eggs
Thicken the sauce as their proteins set during gentle cooking, giving it body.
Dry mustard
Supplies the sharp, pungent heat that defines the sauce.
Sugar
Balances the mustard's bitterness and sharpness with sweetness.
Cider vinegar
Adds acidity that brightens the flavor and cuts the richness.
Butter
Adds fat that enriches the flavor and smooths the texture when beaten in.

The step that matters

Cook until thick. Egg proteins set over gentle heat, so a double boiler is used. If the heat is too high, the eggs can scramble and the sauce turns grainy instead of smooth and thick.

Swap the mustard

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

  1. Mustardthe original
  2. Capsicumfits about as well
  3. Cucumberfits less well
  4. Shallotfits less well

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

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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