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 Dressing
Ingredients
Directions
In a bowl, mix mustard, flour, sugar, salt, and cold water until dissolved.
Add the beaten eggs and vinegar, then stir in the butter.
Cook the mixture slowly over low heat, stirring constantly until it thickens.
Remove from heat and beat thoroughly with an egg beater or spoon.
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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Mustard + vinegartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Flour + buttertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Mustard + flourtop 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).
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Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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
- Eggs
- Thicken the dressing as they cook and bind it into a smooth, creamy emulsion.
- Flour
- Stabilizes the mixture and helps it thicken as it cooks.
- Vinegar
- Adds sharpness that balances the sweetness and richness of the dressing.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a silky mouthfeel to the finished dressing.
- Sugar
- Balances the acidity of the vinegar with a touch of sweetness.
The step that matters
Cooking the mixture over low heat. Egg proteins set when heated, so cooking slowly over low heat while stirring constantly thickens the dressing smoothly. Too much heat can scramble the eggs and leave lumps.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, sugar, egg, vinegar, butter):
- Shallotfits about as well
- Mustardthe original
- Chivefits about as well
- Cucumberfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against flour, sugar, egg, vinegar, butter. 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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