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 ↓
Salad Dressing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the dressing
In a bowl, beat the egg yolks and oil together slowly.
Add the cold milk and vinegar, mixing well.
Pour the mixture into a saucepan and heat over low heat, stirring constantly until it thickens.
Finish and season
Remove from heat and let cool.
Once cooled, season with salt, mustard, and pepper to taste.
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.
-
Vinegar + mustardtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Mustard + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,430 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,814 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Egg + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together88,785 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Milk + peppertop 22% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together26,984 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
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, when heated, thicken the dressing through egg protein setting.
- Oil
- Adds fat and richness, and is held in suspension by the egg yolks.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and body, thinning the mixture so it stays smooth while it thickens.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that sharpens the flavor and balances the richness of the oil and yolks.
The step that matters
Heating until it thickens. Egg yolks thicken as their proteins set with heat, but too much heat or no constant stirring can scramble them. Keeping the heat low and stirring constantly gives a smooth, thickened dressing.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, milk, vinegar, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Potatofits about as well
- Mustardthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, milk, vinegar, pepper. 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.
More salad dressing recipes
You might also like
Chicken Salad623 recipes
Tomato Salad179 recipes
Cold Slaw160 recipes
French Dressing58 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.