Why it works: Flour and mustard are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,066 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Mustard Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Make the sauce
In a bowl, thoroughly mix the all-purpose flour, baked and browned flour, mustard, and salt.
Gradually add water to achieve a smooth consistency.
Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened.
Serve
Serve warm with your dish.
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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Flour + mustardtop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,066 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
- All-purpose flour
- Provides starch that thickens the sauce as it cooks with the liquid.
- Baked and browned flour
- Adds a toasted, nutty aroma and deeper color to the sauce.
- Mustard
- Supplies the sharp, pungent flavor that defines the sauce.
The step that matters
Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Flour starch thickens only when heated in liquid and needs constant stirring to dissolve evenly. High heat or still spots can scorch the flour or leave lumps.
“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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