Why it works: Mustard and vinegar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,067 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Mary Klenha
Ingredients
Directions
Make the dressing
Beat two eggs with two tablespoons of sugar, butter the size of an egg, a teaspoon of mustard, a little pepper, and lastly half a cup of vinegar and half a cup of sweet cream.
Cook until it thickens.
Dress the cabbage
Let cool and pour over shredded cabbage and mix.
Let it stand at least half an hour, then mix again.
Garnish and serve
Garnish with sliced hard boiled eggs.
Tomatoes and lettuce may be made in the same way.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Cream | 1 tbsp (15ml) heavy | 51 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Mustard | 1 tsp (5g) yellow | 3 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
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.
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Mustard + vinegartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
-
Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked 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 dressing as they cook and set, giving it a creamy body.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the sharp vinegar and mustard.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that gives the dressing its tang.
- Sweet cream
- Adds fat and richness, softening the sharpness of the vinegar.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a smooth mouthfeel to the cooked dressing.
- Mustard
- Adds a sharp, pungent flavour that lifts the dressing.
The step that matters
Cook until it thickens. Egg proteins set and thicken the dressing as it heats. If heated too fast or too long, the eggs can scramble or curdle, so cook gently and stir constantly.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, vinegar, cream, egg, butter):
- Mustardthe original
- Capsicumfits about as well
- Chivefits about as well
- Cucumberfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, vinegar, cream, 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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