Spices & Condiments – Mustard

Mustard

Botanical Name: Brassica nigra – “True Mustard” (Black Mustard)
B.alba – White Mustard
B. juncea (Linn) Czernjajev – “Indian Mustard” (Brown Mustard)
Family: Cruciferae
Indian Names: Bengali: Sarisha; Gujurati: Rai; Hindi, Punjabi: Rai, Banarsi Rai, Safed Rai, Kalee, Sarson; Kannada: Sasave; Kashmiri: Aasur, Sarisa; Sanskrit: Asuri, Bimbata; Tamil: Kadugu; Telegu: Avalu; Malay: Biji Sawi; Chinese: Chieh; Italian: Senape; Spanish: Mostaza; Arabic: Khardal

Description:

The genus Brassica consists of over 150 species of annual or biennial herbs several of which are cultivated as oilseed crops (as rape, sarson, toria, etc;), or as vegetable or fodder crops. The seeds of only the above three species have condimental value. The oil yielding brassicas which are predominantly cross-pollinated, constitute a group about which considerable confusion exists, regarding their identification and nomenclature.

The ‘mustard flour’ of commerce is a mixture of the flours of two types of mustard seeds; brown or black mustard (Brassica nigra) and white mustard (Sinapis alba). Its condimental properties are largely due to the essential principles of these two seeds.

The essential principle, or volatile oil, of brown mustard is allyl isothiocyanate, while that of white or yellow mustard is acrinyl isothiocyanate. The essential principles are not present as such in the seeds of brown and white mustards but are produced as a result of hydrolysis of their respective glycosides, ’sinigrin’ (potassium myronate) and ’sinalbin’, by the action of the enzyme myrosin, in the presence of moisture under suitable conditions.

In brief, these condimental brassicas or rather different varities of mustard are discussed below:

1. White Mustard (Sinapsis alba or B.hirta)

White mustard (also commonly called ‘yellow mustard’) or ’sufed rai’ is a self-sterile species, easily recognised by its hairy stem devoid of any bloom. It has irregularly pinnate leaves, large yellow flowers, and spreading, few seeded and hairy pods. These have long empty, knife-like beaks. The seeds are large, white and lightly pitted and give considerable amount of mucilage with cold water.

S. alba is a native of southern Europe and western Asia. It is grown only as a garden crop, in temperate upper India during winter. In India, it does not contribute to the supplies of mustard or mustard oil.

Composition:

Moisture: 7.2%; protein: 27.6%; crude fat: 29.7%; N-free extract: 20.8%; fibre: 10.3%; and ash: 4.5%. The seeds also contain the glucoside, ’sinablin’ and the enzyme ‘myrosin’. In the presence of water, the latter hydrolyses the former, producing acrinyl isothiocyanate, which is only slightly volatile, sinapine acid sulphate and dextrose. The yield of volatile oil is low, 0.16% only.

2. Black Mustard or True Mustard (B.nigra Koch)

Black mustard or ‘banarsi rai’ is highly self-sterile and is quite distinct from other brassicas. The fruits at maturity are closely appressed to the infloreescene axis. The seed coat shows fine reticulations under a lens, and is mucilaginous. The outer-epidermis is covered with a thin cuticle. B.nigra Koch has been cultivated in Europe since the early 13th century and is now reported to be growing wild.

Composition:
The seed contains moisture: 7.6%; N-Substances: 29.1%; N-free extract: 19.2%; ether extract: 28.2%; crude fibre: 11%; ash: 5%. The seeds yield 23-33% fixed oil. The volatile oil of mustard is obtained in a yield of 0.7-1.2% after the hydrolisis of the glucoside, sinigrin, by the enzyme myrosin (Indian seeds are reported to yield 0.68% volatile oil). The oil is optically inactive and consists almost entirely of allyl isothiocyanate (93-99%). Specifications for the pharmaceutical oil are (BPC), and allyl isothiocyanate content not less than 92%.

For the preparation of volatile oil, the fixed oil is first cold pressed from the seeds which are subsequently macerated with tepid water for several hours, and steam-distilled. The oil obtained is an extremely powerful irritant owing to its volatility and penetrating power, and is responsible for the painful nature of alcohol, or in the form with 50 times its volume of alcohol, or in the form of rubefacient. It is also used in cases of pleurisy and pneumonia.

Indian Mustard or Rai is a self-fertile species and is a very variable annual. Its narrow based leaves are not stem-clasping like those of atoria and sarson. Rai matures later than either. The seeds are rugose, reddish-brown, and generally smaller.

Uses of Mustard Seeds
Black mustard is ground with white mustard for preparing table mustard and also various medicinal mustard preparations such as bath mustard, mustard bran, and mustard flour. The expressed oil has mild rubefacient properties and is used as a liniment. The technical oil obtained during the preparation of mustard also contains the oil from white mustard seeds. In Europe, it is used for making soap, for burning and as a lubricant. In India, seeds of black mustard are used in pickles and curries.

This well known spice has its use in medicine as a stimulating external application. The rubefacient action causes a mild irritation to the skin, stimulating the circulation in that area and relieving muscular and skeletal pain. Its stimulating, diaphoretic action can be utilized in the way that Cayenne and Ginger are. For feverishness, colds, and influenza, Mustard may be taken as a tea or ground and sprinkled into a bath. The stimulation of circulation will aid chilblains as well as the conditions already mentioned. An infusion or poultice of Mustard will aid in cases of bronchitis.

 

Mustard oil itself is said to be useful to cure dandruff and to give a healthy shining looking scalp and hair. Some of the selected methods are as follows:

Home Remedies for Dandruff and Itchiness
* Add 1 teaspoon of camphor to half a cup of coconut or neem oil. Store it in glass container.
Dosage: Massage this oil into the scalp before bed.
* Mix 1 teaspoon of castor, mustard and coconut oil each and massage into the scalp.
* Mix one part of lemon juice with two parts of coconut oil. Massage into the roots of the hair regularly.

Home Remedies for Conditioning and Achieving Softer hair
* Massage the root of the hair with a mixture of the yellow part of one egg, 2 tbsp lemon juice and 1 tbsp mustard or olive oil. Wash off after one hour. This will make the hair soft and lustrous.
* Mix 1 ½ tsp mustard oil, 1 ½ cup tea extract, 1 egg yellow and juice of lemon in henna (mehendi) powder. Wash off after one hour.
* Apply luke warm mustard oil to the hair and scalp the night before you wash it.

Preservation Properties:

Of the spices, condiments and herbs studied with respect to their effect on yeast fermentation in wines, etc, mustard flour was easily the most efficacious being followed in order by cloves and cinnamon. Little or no preservative action could be detected with cardamoms, cumin, coriander, caraway, celery seed, pimento, nutmeg, ginger, thyme, bay leaves, marjoram, savory, rosemary, black or cayenne peppers. Comparing the stronger of the above preservatives with benzoic acid and sulphur dioxide, it was found that mustard was definitely stronger than either of the two chemical preservatives. Ground cloves has a potency of the same order as that of benzoic acid, and superior to that of sulphur dioxide.

Recommended Books
Gourmet Mustards – Using Them In Your Cooking

Incredible Secrets of Mustard

Mustard Seed Market – Natural Foods Cookbook