Why it works: Pepper and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,047 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓
Mayonnaise
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Chill all ingredients thoroughly.
Beat the egg yolk slightly with a wooden spoon.
Make the mayonnaise
Add the oil drop by drop, stirring vigorously after each drop until 2 tablespoons have been added.
Gradually add the oil more rapidly while stirring vigorously.
As the dressing thickens, add the vinegar mixed with mustard a few drops at a time.
Once nearly all the oil is added, stir in the salt and cayenne pepper.
Rescue and store
If the mixture curdles, add a small piece of ice and beat vigorously.
If it remains curdled, start over with another yolk, using the curdled mixture instead of oil.
Set aside in a cool place until ready to serve.
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.
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.
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Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Pepper + mustardtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,430 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Mustard + lemontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together3,816 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Egg + lemontop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together44,316 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Egg + mustardtop 28% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,210 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
Egg and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 44,316 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 yolk
- Emulsifies the oil and water-based vinegar, forming a thick, stable sauce.
- Oil
- Supplies the fat that gives mayonnaise its rich body and smooth texture.
- Lemon juice or vinegar
- Adds acidity that balances the richness and helps keep the emulsion stable.
- Mustard
- Helps bind the oil and liquid together, supporting a stable emulsion.
The step that matters
Adding the oil. Oil must go in slowly at first, with vigorous stirring, so droplets are fully dispersed in the yolk. Adding it too fast overwhelms the emulsifier, and the mixture curdles and separates.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, pepper, lemon):
- Spinachfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Asparagusfits better
- Mustardthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, pepper, lemon. 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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