Name: Lobster Salads
Ingredients: one spoonful of mixed mustard; three tablespoonfuls of sweet oil; two eggs; mustard; vinegar; salt

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 ↓

Lobster Salads

Ingredients

Directions

Make the dressing

Beat the yolks of the eggs, add the mustard, making it very light.
Add the oil, vinegar, and salt, and the soft part of the lobster.

Assemble the salad

Pour this over the hard lobster, moisten the lettuce with the dressing, and mix all together.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

203Calories

6 gProtein

19 gFat

1 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 5 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Mustard	1 tsp (5g) yellow	3
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

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

By Keokuk (Iowa). Westminster Presbyterian church. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Mustard + vinegartop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together14,067 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Mustard + eggtop 28% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together9,210 recipes

Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
Egg + vinegartop 33% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together12,922 recipes

Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

Egg and vinegar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 12,922 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

Eggs: Yolks emulsify with the oil and mustard to form a light, thick dressing.
Sweet oil: Forms the body of the dressing, adding richness and smooth texture.
Mixed mustard: Helps emulsify the dressing and adds sharp flavour.
Vinegar: Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the oil.