Special Garlic Dressing

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. Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together27,047 recipes

   Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

2. Mustard + garlictop 6% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together4,053 recipes

   Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

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

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

4. Pepper + garlictop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together27,090 recipes

   Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

5. Mustard + peppertop 9% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together15,430 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

What each ingredient does

Mayonnaise

Provides the creamy base, fat and body that carry the other flavours.

Egg yolk

Adds richness and helps emulsify the dressing for a smooth, stable texture.

Lemon juice

Adds acidity that brightens the flavour and cuts the richness of the mayonnaise.

Red wine vinegar

Adds sharp acidity that balances the sweetness and fat.

Sugar

Adds a touch of sweetness that rounds out the acidity and mustard.

Garlic powder

Supplies the dominant savoury garlic aroma throughout the dressing.

Swap the garlic

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (mustard, sugar, lemon, red wine, vinegar, pepper, egg):

1. Tarragonfits better
2. Dillfits better
3. Thymefits better
4. Garlicthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against mustard, sugar, lemon, red wine, vinegar, pepper, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.