Why it works: Vinegar and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 10% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,297 recipes. Both carry isoamyl acetate, which smells banana, fruity. The science ↓
Salad Dressing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the dressing
In a bowl, combine egg yolks, salt, cayenne pepper, sugar, and vinegar.
Slowly mix in olive oil, drop by drop.
Place the bowl in a larger pan of boiling water and stir constantly.
Remove from heat when it begins to thicken and beat until smooth.
If too thick or not sour enough, add more vinegar.
Store
Store in a cool place.
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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Vinegar + olivetop 10% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,297 recipes
Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, fruity).
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Pepper + olivetop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together30,263 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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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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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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 thicken the dressing as they set with gentle heat.
- Olive oil
- Adds richness and body by forming a stable emulsion with the yolks.
- Vinegar
- Adds sourness that balances the richness of the yolks and oil.
- White sugar
- Adds a little sweetness to balance the vinegar's sharpness.
The step that matters
Remove from heat when it begins to thicken. Egg yolks set with heat, so overheating can scramble them into lumps. Pulling the bowl off as soon as it thickens and beating it smooth keeps the dressing creamy.
“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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