Why it works: Mustard and tarragon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 901 recipes. Both carry methyleugenol, which smells clove, spice. The science ↓
French Dressing
Ingredients
Directions
In a bowl, combine salt and paprika.
Slowly add the oil while stirring continuously.
Mix in the vinegar or lemon juice.
If desired, add mustard and tarragon vinegar for extra flavor.
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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Mustard + tarragontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together901 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
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Vinegar + tarragontop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,547 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Vinegar + mustardtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Oil
- Forms the body of the dressing and carries flavor, giving it a silky mouthfeel.
- Vinegar or lemon juice
- Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the richness of the oil.
- Mustard
- Acts as an emulsifier that helps the oil and acid stay blended, and adds a sharp note.
The step that matters
Slowly add the oil while stirring continuously. Adding oil slowly while stirring lets it disperse into small droplets in the acid. Pouring it in quickly causes it to separate out, leaving a greasy, unstable dressing.
Swap the mustard
The recipe marks mustard as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, tarragon):
- Mustardthe original
- Shallotfits about as well
- Lettucefits less well
- Cucumberfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, tarragon. 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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