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 ↓
Salad and Slaw Dressing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the dressing
Combine flour, sugar, mustard, vinegar, butter, egg, salt, and water in a double boiler.
Boil the mixture until thickened.
Remove from heat and stir in evaporated milk or cream.
Serve
Use the dressing for slaw or fruit salad.
Omit the sugar when using it for potato salad or meat.
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.
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Mustard + vinegartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Sugar + evaporated milktop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together804 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + mustardtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,066 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together92,116 recipes
Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
Flour and butter barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 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
- Egg
- Thickens the dressing as it cooks and adds richness.
- Flour
- Thickens the dressing when heated with the liquids.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that gives the dressing its tang.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness to balance the vinegar's sharpness.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a smooth, rich texture.
- Evaporated milk or cream
- Adds creaminess and mellows the dressing's flavor.
The step that matters
Boil the mixture until thickened. The egg and flour must be heated gently in the double boiler and thickened without curdling. Overheating can scramble the egg, leaving the dressing lumpy, so keep the heat moderate and stir steadily.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, sugar, vinegar, butter, egg, evaporated milk):
- Capsicumfits about as well
- Sweet potatofits about as well
- Mustardthe original
- Shallotfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, sugar, vinegar, butter, egg, evaporated milk. 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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