Name: Columbian Salad Cream
Ingredients: 1 cup mayonnaise; 2 tablespoons vinegar; 1 tablespoon sugar; 1 teaspoon mustard; ¼ teaspoon salt; ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Why it works: Vinegar and mustard 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 ↓

Columbian Salad Cream

Ingredients

Directions

Make the dressing

Combine mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, mustard, salt, and black pepper in a bowl.
Whisk until smooth and well blended.
Adjust seasoning to taste.

Serve

Serve chilled over your favorite salad.

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.

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.

Vinegar + mustardtop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together14,067 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Mustard + peppertop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together15,430 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together27,814 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Vinegar + sugartop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together20,806 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar + mustardtop 19% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together8,424 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

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

What each ingredient does

Mayonnaise: Provides the emulsified fat base that gives the dressing its body and creamy texture.
Vinegar: Adds acidity that brightens the rich mayonnaise and balances its flavor.
Sugar: Adds sweetness that rounds out the sharpness of the vinegar and mustard.
Mustard: Adds sharp, pungent flavor and helps the dressing taste more complex.