Why it works: Butter and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 81,283 recipes. Both carry (z)-4-heptenal, which smells biscuit, cream. The science ↓
Salad Dressing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the dressing
Combine one tablespoon sugar, one tablespoon mustard, one small teaspoon salt, and three or four tablespoons butter or oil.
Stir until perfectly smooth, then add three well beaten eggs.
Add one-half cup hot vinegar and one cup milk or cream.
Cook in a double boiler, stirring constantly.
Serve
Serve warm.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| 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.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
-
Butter + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Mustard + vinegartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Milk + teatop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together738 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).
-
Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Mustard + teatop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together67 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
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 give it a rich, body-building structure.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth, velvety mouthfeel.
- Vinegar
- Provides sharp acidity that balances the sweetness and richness.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and creaminess, softening the sharpness of the vinegar.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness to balance the acidity of the vinegar.
- Mustard
- Adds sharp flavor and helps keep the dressing emulsified.
The step that matters
Cook in a double boiler, stirring constantly. Eggs thicken gently over indirect heat, but direct or uneven heat can make them scramble or curdle. Constant stirring spreads the heat evenly so the dressing stays smooth and thickens evenly.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, butter, vinegar, milk, tea, egg):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Mustardthe original
- Asparagusfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, butter, vinegar, milk, tea, egg. 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.
More salad dressing recipes
You might also like
Chicken Salad623 recipes
Tomato Salad179 recipes
Cold Slaw160 recipes
French Dressing58 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.