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
Make the dressing
Beat the eggs with sugar until creamy.
Bring the vinegar to a boil.
Mix the other ingredients and stir into the boiling vinegar.
Cook until thickened, being careful not to curdle.
Remove from heat and stir in the butter.
Serve
Before serving, fold in a little whipped cream.
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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Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Mustard + walnuttop 9% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together849 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Sugar + creamtop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
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Walnut + buttertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,832 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Thicken the dressing as they cook and give it a creamy body.
- Vinegar
- Provides the sharp acidity that balances the sweetness of the dressing.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the dressing and softens the sharpness of the vinegar.
- Thick cream
- Adds richness and a smooth, creamy texture to the dressing.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a glossy finish and a rounder, smoother mouthfeel.
The step that matters
Cook until thickened, being careful not to curdle. Egg proteins set as they heat, thickening the dressing. If it gets too hot or cooks too long, the eggs scramble and curdle, leaving a grainy texture. Keep the heat gentle and stir constantly.
Swap the walnut
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, egg, sugar, cream, mustard, butter):
- Almondfits better
- Chestnutfits about as well
- Sesamefits about as well
- Walnutthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, egg, sugar, cream, mustard, butter. 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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