Why it works: Pepper and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,047 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓
Vinaigrette Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Mix salt and pepper in a bowl.
Add oil and mix well.
Gradually stir in lemon juice or vinegar.
Adjust seasoning to taste.
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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Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Oil
- Forms the body of the sauce and carries its flavour and richness.
- Lemon juice or vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the sauce and balances the richness of the oil.
The step that matters
Gradually stir in lemon juice or vinegar. Adding the acid slowly while mixing helps the oil and acid form a temporary emulsion, so the dressing stays combined rather than separating into layers.
“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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