MUSTARD
(white, yellow), Brassica alba; black (brown), Brassica nigra)
Mustard was formerly made up into balls with honey or vinegar and a little cinnamon, to keep till wanted, when they were mixed with more vinegar. It was sold in balls till Mrs. Clements, of Durham, on July 10, 1720*, invented the method of preparing mustard flour or powder, which long went under the name of Durham Mustard.
*Date sent in by Valdi Reinas, Estonia
Mustard plants produce about 1,000 pounds of seeds per acre.
In one year at New York's Yankee Stadium more than 1,600 gallons plus 2,000,000 individual packets of mustard are consumed.
Most of the mustard seeds used in Dijon, France are actually grown in the United States and Canada. Canada produces about 90 percent of the world's supply of mustard seeds.
Over 700 million pounds of mustard are consumed worldwide each year.
Americans use more mustard than any other country in the world.
George J. French introduced his French's mustard in 1904, the same year that the hot dog was introduced to America at the St. Louis World's Fair.
Florida Mustard, is a mild mustard made in France's Champagne district. It is flavored with wine from the same region and is also known as Champagne Mustard.
The Mustard Museum is in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin. It has the world's largest collection of mustards, with over 3,500 varieties.
In the 1978 movie 'National Lampoon's Animal House' Bluto (John Belushi) poured a whole jar of mustard on himself at a toga party and smears it all over his shirt.
Mustard's pungency results from Acrinyl Isothiocyanate (in Brassica hirta), Allyl Isothiocyanate (in Brassica nigra and Brassica juncea). These compounds don't actually exist in the seeds, but are formed when the seeds are broken, releasing enzymes and other compounds within the seeds to combine in the presence of some form of moisture. The temperature of the liquid which is used to prepare the mustard, as well as its acidity, determine the heat of the mixture. Too high a temperature, or a pH that is too low, and the prepared mustard will not be hot. The enzymes responsible for the transformation are easily destroyed by heat--the seeds are ground, commercially, in a way that prevents build-up of heat from friction. In many south Indian recipes, the whole seeds are fried in hot fat, which provides, not additional spicy "heat" but, a pleasant nutty flavor. If you want the heat of mustard in a cooked dish, allow these enzymes to react first, then add the empowered product to the dish to be cooked.
Generously contributed by Gary Allen, an excerpt from his forthcoming book, The Herbalist in the Kitchen.
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