Why it works: Vinegar and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,814 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
French Dressing
Ingredients
Directions
Make the dressing
In a bowl, combine ½ cup of oil with ¼ cup of vinegar.
Add ¼ teaspoon of salt and a pinch of pepper.
Whisk until well blended.
Serve
Serve over your favorite salad.
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 + peppertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,814 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Oil
- Provides the fat and body that carry the flavour of the dressing.
- Vinegar
- Adds the acidity that gives the dressing its sharp, bright taste.
The step that matters
Whisk until well blended. Oil and vinegar do not mix on their own, so whisking breaks the oil into tiny droplets that stay suspended longer. Without thorough whisking the dressing separates quickly and tastes uneven.
“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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