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
In a bowl, beat the eggs, vinegar, butter, salt, sugar, mustard, and cayenne pepper together.
Cook the mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens.
Remove from heat and continue to beat until smooth.
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 + mustardtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Mustard + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,430 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,814 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Vinegar + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Egg proteins set as they heat, thickening the dressing into a creamy base.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that sharpens the flavour and balances the richness of the eggs and butter.
- Butter
- Adds fat that gives the dressing a smooth, rich mouthfeel.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness that softens the sharpness of the vinegar.
- Mustard
- Adds a sharp, aromatic bite and helps hold the fat and liquid together.
The step that matters
Cooking over low heat while stirring constantly. Egg proteins thicken gently when heated slowly and evenly. Too much heat or unstirred spots can scramble the eggs, leaving lumps instead of a smooth, thick dressing.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (egg, vinegar, butter, sugar, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Mustardthe original
- Cucumberfits about as well
- Shallotfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against egg, vinegar, butter, sugar, 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.
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