My freshly made mustard is always too bitter. However, after two weeks in the fridge, it mellows nicely. Can I speed up this process by leaving my mustard on the counter?
Don’t store at room temp. Most home made mustard recipes don’t have enough vinegar and salt to keep safely at room temp. To mellow out mustard quickly, heat up in microwave or on the stove. Bring to a bare simmer, turn off the heat, then let cool to room temp. put in a jar, and refrigerate. You may have to add a bit of water to thin it out after it cools to room temp.
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Are you making mustard from seeds or powder? Mustard powder is often bitter I think.
From seeds.
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I heated half on the stove and left half as is. I could not discern a difference between the two. Now I have a different issue. The bitterness is gone, but my mustard has a strong wasabi taste. It’s never happened to me before, but this is the first time I made mustard in a Vitamix. Is it possible the blender overheated the mustard seeds?
I make a lot of mustard but I’d like to see your recipe before I give you any more advice. Would you write it up here?
¼ cup (40 g) yellow mustard seeds
¼ cup (40 g) brown mustard seeds
¼ cup (60 ml) apple cider vinegar
¼ cup (60 ml) white wine vinegar
¼ cup (60 m) honey
¼ cup (60 ml) water
¾ teaspoon salt
Blend for 30 seconds on high.
Interesting. Most recipes recommend you soak the mustard seeds In an equal amount of water overnight before grinding them. I can see that would affect the texture - not sure about the flavor. That might account for the initial bitterness.
I don’t see any reason it would taste like wasabi although I don’t have much luck with honey in mustard. I find it often winds up with an odd flavor.
We hot pack & process our mustards which doesn’t affect the flavor.
I’m actually doing mustard tonight. I’ll ponder on it & see if I think of anything else.
I used a different brand of yellow mustard seeds this time, too. I visited a different Indian grocer than my usual one.
I will try without honey soon.
Well, overlook the obvious. The quality of the mustard seeds certainly can vary. Maybe they were really old & stale. If you’re going to do this regularly buy them in bulk online. There are several good sellers on e-bay. We buy from a local distributor in 50# bags.
Now that is serious!
Wow, that is serious. Can you recommend an eBay seller off the top of your head?
I think it’s YOUR recipe that we need to see!
I may have to divide everything by a few hundred, but still…
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Simple recipe.
3 cups yellow mustard seeds
3 cups brown mustard seeds
6 cups water
Soak over night. If you soak it more than 24 hours add 1/2 C vinegar or the seeds will either sprout or ferment.
Make a 50% vinegar ( 1/2 water & 1/2 vinegar)
Process the mustard in your food processor/Vitamix/whatever adding enough of the vinegar solution to make it smooth. Salt to taste. When you process the mustard make it a little loose - it will tighten up a bit after it’s processed.
For horseradish mustard, which we make a lot of, grind the horseradish fresh & let it stand 10 mins at least to develop it’s full potency, then mix it in to the finished mustard. We use about a pound of horseradish for every 72 oz. of mustard.
Have fun!
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Thanks!
You’re welcome.
Have you ever used mustard seeds from Restaurant Depot?
In a pinch yes. I buy a fair amount of dried spices from RD and I have generally been satisfied with the quality. I find most of their house products are at least satisfactory & some are excellent. Their pan spray is the best by far. I also buy their Vanilla Extract which is as good as any other I’ve bought. $58 per quart today . But it’s not cheaper anywhere else.
A couple questions about your recipe. I discard the water after soaking, correct? Also, do you think 8 hours is a long enough soak?
P.S. My Restaurant Depot only carries artificial vanilla. They stopped carrying KA flour a few years ago, too.
The mustard should pretty much soak up all the water. If there’s some excess water just leave it in. I’d shoot for more than 8 hours but I’ve gone that short in a pinch. It depends some on your grinder. Soaking softens the mustard seeds so they grind easier & more completely. Just bear in mind that the seeds may continue to absorb liquid & you mustard might wind up a bit dry after a couple weeks. I keep it a bit on the soupy side & let it tighten up after it’s finished. This seems to yield a product of a good consistency. I have to make some mustard so I’ll try & grab some pics for you.
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