Why it works: Vinegar and mustard 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 ↓
To Make Mustard
Ingredients
Directions
Bring ½ cup vinegar to a boil.
Stir in 3 teaspoons mustard creamed in cold vinegar, ½ teaspoon sugar, and ¼ teaspoon salt.
Let cook for 2 minutes.
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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Vinegar + mustardtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Vinegar + sugartop 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
- Mustard
- Supplies the sharp, pungent flavour that defines the condiment.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that sharpens the mustard and balances its heat.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness that softens the sharpness of the vinegar and mustard.
The step that matters
Stirring the mustard into the boiling vinegar. Creaming the mustard in cold vinegar first helps it blend smoothly without lumps. Heat changes the sharp bite of mustard, so the timing of the boil and the 2-minute cook affects how hot or mellow the final mustard tastes.
“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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