Why it works: Vinegar and tarragon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,547 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Tarragon Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
In a stewpan, combine demi-glaze and broth; bring to a boil for a few minutes.
Add vinegar and tarragon leaves; simmer for 2 minutes.
Serve with poultry, especially spring chickens.
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 + tarragontop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,547 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
- Demi-glaze
- Gives the sauce body, savoury depth and a glossy finish from reduced stock.
- Broth
- Thins the demi-glaze to a pourable sauce while adding savoury liquid.
- Vinegar
- Adds sharpness that balances the rich, savoury base.
- Tarragon leaves
- Contributes the herb's distinctive anise-like aroma to the sauce.
The step that matters
Simmer the vinegar and tarragon for only 2 minutes. A short simmer lets the tarragon add fresh aroma and keeps the vinegar's sharpness bright. Longer boiling dulls the volatile aromatic compounds in the herb and can make it taste bitter and cooked.
“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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