Moutarde de Dijon

Burgundian mustard made the old way, with verjuice in place of vinegar

Origin: Dijon, Burgundy, France

From the journey of Mustard.

Dijon mustard is a style rather than a place, and that is the first thing worth knowing about it. The name is not protected, it may legally be made anywhere in the world, and most of it is; the seed behind nearly all of it is Canadian. Only the separate designation Moutarde de Bourgogne requires both Burgundian seed and Burgundian wine. What the name does mean is a method. Dijon had a mustard trade by the thirteenth century, a royal ordinance regulating its composition by 1390, and an exclusive charter granted to the town's vinegar-makers in 1634. The change that produced the modern article came later, when Jean Naigeon substituted verjus for vinegar. Verjuice is the juice of unripe grapes, sour but not sharp, and it lacks the aggressive acetic bite that vinegar brings. In a mustard that matters enormously, because acid is not a neutral ingredient here: it halts the enzymatic reaction that produces the pungency. Gentler acid, added later, allows more of the mustard's own heat to develop before it is arrested, which is why a proper Dijon is smooth and hot rather than sharp and thin. Maille was founded in 1747 and Grey-Poupon in 1866, and between them they took the name around the world. The French use it structurally. A spoonful in a vinaigrette is doing physics as much as flavour, since the mucilage in the seed coat holds oil and vinegar in suspension; it thickens pan sauces, coats meat before roasting, and underpins rémoulade, ravigote, and gribiche. Made at home it is a great deal better than most of what is sold, and it takes ten minutes of work spread over two days.

Ingredients

Mustard

100 g brown mustard seed
40 g yellow mustard seed

Liquid

250 ml verjuice, or dry white wine with 1 tbsp lemon juice
100 ml cold water

Aromatics

1 whole small shallot, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 whole bay leaf

To Finish

2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1.5 tsp fine sea salt
1 tsp clear honey
0.25 tsp ground allspice, optional

Method

Simmer the verjuice with the shallot, garlic, and bay leaf in a small pan for five minutes, then take off the heat and leave to cool completely. Strain and discard the solids.
Combine both mustard seeds in a non-reactive bowl, pour over the cooled strained verjuice and the cold water, cover, and leave at room temperature for 48 hours.
Tip the swollen seed and all its liquid into a blender and process for three to five minutes, stopping to scrape down and to let the machine cool, until as smooth as you can get it.
Leave the blended mustard uncovered at room temperature for fifteen minutes. Taste it at the start and again at the end.
Now stir in the vinegar, salt, honey, and allspice if using, and blend briefly to combine.
Pass through a fine sieve for the classic smooth Dijon texture, pushing hard with a ladle and discarding the husk. Skip this for a rustic wholegrain.
Pot into sterilised jars, seal, and refrigerate for at least three days before using.

Notes

Verjuice is sold by good grocers and online and is worth buying; dry white wine with a squeeze of lemon is an acceptable stand-in but gives a sharper mustard. It keeps for three months refrigerated in a sealed jar and slowly loses heat over that time, which is normal. Commercial mustard lasts longer because it is pasteurised, which is also why it never tastes quite as alive as this does. For moutarde à l'ancienne, the wholegrain style of Meaux, blend only half the mixture and stir the whole soaked seeds back in. Use it in a vinaigrette at one part mustard to one of vinegar and three of oil; in a pan sauce with cream after deglazing; on a rabbit or a pork loin before roasting; and in céleri rémoulade, where it is the entire dressing.

The Gastrographer

Name: Moutarde de Dijon
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 72 h
Yield: 16
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: 100 g brown mustard seed; 40 g yellow mustard seed; 250 ml verjuice, or dry white wine with 1 tbsp lemon juice; 100 ml cold water; 1 whole small shallot, finely chopped; 1 clove garlic, crushed; 1 whole bay leaf; 2 tbsp white wine vinegar; 1.5 tsp fine sea salt; 1 tsp clear honey; 0.25 tsp ground allspice, optional

Mapping Culinary History

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control