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Salad

Red Dressing

A vinaigrette dressing made with onion juice, vinegar, olive oil, tomato, red pepper, salt, and pepper.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Olive M. Hulse · From a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Olive and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Red Dressing

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Mix salt and pepper and add one teaspoonful of onion juice.

  2. Peel one tomato and chop finely, draining off most of the juice.

  3. Add the tomato, one red pepper chopped finely, and two tablespoonfuls of vinegar.

  4. Pour in slowly four tablespoonfuls of olive oil, mix thoroughly, and set on ice before using.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

202Calories
3 gProtein
14 gFat
18 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 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 Olive M. Hulse. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Project Gutenberg).

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.

  1. Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,539 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together17,923 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  3. Onion + tomatotop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together20,633 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  4. Onion + olivetop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together29,779 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  5. Vinegar + olivetop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together12,297 recipes

    Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, fruity).

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

What each ingredient does

Olive oil
Forms the body of the dressing as it emulsifies with the vinegar and juices.
Vinegar
Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the richness of the oil.
Tomato
Adds moisture, body and sweet-tart flavour to the dressing.
Red pepper
Contributes crisp texture and sweet, fresh flavour.
Onion juice
Adds sharp aromatic flavour that supports the other ingredients.

The step that matters

Pour in the olive oil slowly. Adding oil gradually while mixing lets it disperse into small droplets held by the vinegar and juices, so the dressing forms a smooth emulsion rather than separating into a greasy layer.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, olive, tomato, pepper):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Cucumberfits better
  3. Eggplantfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, olive, tomato, pepper. 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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