How Mustard is Prepared

Two species of mustard seeds are commonly used to prepare mustard depending on the brand and type of mustard being prepared. The brown mustard, (Brassica juncea) and the yellow mustard (Sinapis alba), commonly referred to as the north American hot dog mustard.

A third mustard commonly referred to as the black mustard (Brassica nigra) was very popular in the 1950s. but has almost been replaced by the brown and yellow mustards, because of difficulties in the mechanical harvesting of pods (fruits) which tend to split and disperse the seeds before they can be harvested.

Dijon style mustard is made from Brown mustard (Brassica juncea) and English style mustard is made from a combination of brown (Brassica juncea) and yellow mustard (Sinapis alba).

How to Make Prepared Mustard

To make ‘prepared mustard’, mustard seeds are ground using the wet or dry milling process. The wet milling process produces a paste, and the bran (seed coats) are removed by centrifuging.

In the dry milling process, the seeds are dehulled (seed coat is removed) then they are milled to a fine powder. The bran may be used in industrial food preparation or sent to an oil extraction plant to extract mustard oil.

The paste or powder is mixed with water or vinegar and combination of spices depending on the mustard being prepared. Wheat flour and turmeric is usually added during preparation of mustard. Turmeric gives the bright yellow colour.

Since the hot compound allyl isothiocyanate is volatile, much of the heat is lost in the process of mixing mustard with water or vinegar, resulting in less pungency than might be expected from the mustard seeds.

Prepared mustard generally has about one-third to one-half the strength of dry mustard.
Mustard made using the dry milling process is hotter and more pungent than that made using the wet milling process, because much of the heat is lost when mustard is mixed with water, during milling.

Yellow Hot dog Mustard, Old Fashioned Dijon and Dry Mustard (Mustard Powder)

Important Point to Note:

Mustard oil is banned for edible consumption in the EU, USA and Canada, principally due to its high erucic acid content and is only used in industrial preparations. It’s however, a popular cooking oil in countries like India, Pakistan and Bangladesh just to mention a few. (Times of India; WIKI; Fox News)