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
Mix mustard with enough water to form a paste.
Add the yolks of 2 or 3 eggs and beat until well combined.
Dissolve sugar in a small amount of water and stir into the mixture.
Add red pepper and mix well.
Pour in oil, 2 tablespoons at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition.
Finally, add vinegar and mix well.
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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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).
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Mustard + sugartop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked 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
- Egg yolks
- Emulsify the oil and water into a thick, creamy dressing.
- Oil
- Provides fat and richness, forming the body of the dressing as it emulsifies.
- Mustard
- Helps stabilise the emulsion and adds a sharp flavour.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the richness of the oil.
- White sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the acidity of the vinegar.
The step that matters
Adding the oil slowly. Oil must be added a little at a time and mixed thoroughly so the egg yolk can absorb it into a stable emulsion. Adding it too fast can cause the dressing to separate and break.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, sugar, pepper, vinegar):
- Capsicumfits better
- Mustardthe original
- Cucumberfits less well
- Cabbagefits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, sugar, pepper, vinegar. 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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