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 ↓
Salad Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
In a bowl, mix the dry mustard and 1 tablespoon of cream until well combined.
Add pepper and coarse sea salt to taste.
Stir in the tarragon vinegar and the remaining ½ cup of cream.
If using oil, mix it with the mustard and cream before adding the vinegar.
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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Pepper + tarragontop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,399 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Tarragon + vinegartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,547 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
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Mustard + vinegartop 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).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Dry mustard
- Adds sharp flavor and helps hold the cream and oil together in a smooth mixture.
- Cream
- Adds richness and body, giving the dressing a smooth, creamy texture.
- Tarragon vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the richness of the cream.
The step that matters
Mixing the oil before the vinegar. Mustard and cream form a thick base that helps hold oil in fine droplets. Adding the vinegar too early can disrupt this base, so the dressing may separate.
Swap the mustard
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, pepper, tarragon, vinegar):
- Mustardthe original
- Shallotfits about as well
- Lettucefits less well
- Capsicumfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against cream, pepper, tarragon, vinegar. 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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