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 an earthen dish, combine mustard, sugar, salt, cayenne pepper, and egg yolks.
Set the dish on ice and stir with a silver or wooden spoon until well mixed.
Gradually add the bottle of table oil while stirring until the mixture is light.
Stir in the vinegar, mixing continuously in one direction.
Finally, fold in the whipped cream gently.
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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Mustard + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,430 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Pepper + vinegartop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,814 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg yolks
- Emulsify the oil and vinegar so the dressing thickens and stays smooth.
- Table oil
- Forms the bulk of the dressing, giving richness and body as it is stirred in.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that sharpens the flavour and balances the richness of the oil.
- Whipped cream
- Folded in at the end to lighten the texture and add softness.
- Mustard
- Helps hold the emulsion together and adds sharp flavour.
The step that matters
Adding the oil gradually. Oil must be added slowly while stirring so the egg yolks can coat the droplets and form a stable emulsion. Adding it too fast can cause the dressing to break and separate.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, pepper, egg, vinegar, cream):
- Capsicumfits about as well
- Mustardthe original
- Horseradishfits about as well
- Spinachfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, pepper, egg, vinegar, cream. 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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