Accessing the flavour of mustard seeds

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Amateur1

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I'm incorporating mustard seeds when I make porridge (boil in milk for 5 minutes) and buckwheat (boil in water for 20 minutes). I've tried grinding them then soaking in cold water before adding to the porridge and simply add the ground seeds to the buckwheat.
In all cases I get no taste from the mustard seeds.
What is the best way to get flavour from the mustard?
 
In Indian cuisine, the seeds are toasted or fried until they begin to pop. that´s when they´re added to a dish. I don´t think soaking them in water is going to bring out the flavour unless you soak them for at least 24 hours, as you might if you were making mustard as a condiment.
 
I only use whole black mustard seeds (and powdered yellow mustard). I fry them in oil for a few seconds before adding vegetables for stir frying (as karadekoolaid mentioned above).
 
Are you using yellow or black mustard seeds?
Black have a stronger taste, but add stated above you'd need to fry then until they pop first to get the most from them.

You could try boiling the cracked/crushed seeds in milk rather than water. It's a technique from the Baltic states (and other former Soviet states down the old iron curtain) for poppy seeds which are then first boiled in milk (ive used soy milk before now without issue) and then cooled before grinding (warning they expand on grinding and I'd suspect mustard seeds would do the same Recipe - Povitica - Poppy Seed Roll or Strudel ).

Can I ask why you're asking mustard seeds to quinoa porridge? In my mind, poppy seeds would taste much better in it, but...
 
I have yellow mustard seeds.
They were used in a recipe I was trying, so I still have quite a few left.
For how long, should they be boiled in milk? I tried for a few minutes in porridge, but they had no taste.
My book "The science of spice" says cacao goes well with mustard, so I wanted to experiment. I use porridge as my first experiment before progressing to my very serious chocolate quinoa recipe.
Thanks for all your advice everyone.
 
Amateur1 said:
My book "The science of spice" says cacao goes well with mustard, so I wanted to experiment.
Click to expand...
Well mustard seeds may well pair with cacao, but my personal opinion, having worked with spices for over 40 years, is that there´s too much going on there for the mustard flavour to come through. Milk, quinoa, buckwheat, etc.
I´d just try making some chocolate truffles, fry some black mustard seeds in butter, and cover the truffles with them. Might work.
 
Thanks. I have quinoa or buckwheat or porridge with milk - not all at once.
 
Amateur1 said:
I have yellow mustard seeds.
They were used in a recipe I was trying, so I still have quite a few left.
For how long, should they be boiled in milk? I tried for a few minutes in porridge, but they had no taste.
My book "The science of spice" says cacao goes well with mustard, so I wanted to experiment. I use porridge as my first experiment before progressing to my very serious chocolate quinoa recipe.
Thanks for all your advice everyone.
Click to expand...

I'd probably start by soaking them overnight in milk and then bringing them to the boil and simmering for 5-10 minutes. I'd be aiming to do this at the same time as cooking the porridge. If that still doesn't give any flavour, look at grinding them or at the very minimum cracking the seeds before boiling them. Like all seeds they have an exterior coating to aid them is in being a seed, strong enough to get through to better weather/next growing season without them rotting before they germinate, so that won't assist in getting any flavour out. Cracking or grinding them will break that making it easier to soak them. Soak and simmer...

It's going to be trial and error. You may find that you're simply not using enough to get any flavour from yellow mustard seeds. They are the mild version. Black has more flavour.

The aim of tempering is to expose the seeds to a high temperature, higher than boiling water, to get them to crack (that's the popping). It's then poured over the dish at the end or added at the beginning (it varies from recipe to recipe). Subsequent cooking, and with my Indian dishes that's usually slow and long often reheated, will allow some flavour to come out.

I tend to be using ½-1 tbsp of mustard seeds, usually 1tsp each of the yellow and the black, but that's for serving to 6.

Their taste isn't a strong mustard flavour like the prepared mustard is. It's much more subtle than that.
 
Watching cnn earlier there is a world wide shortage of dijon mustard. Won't effect me as I only use yellow and black seeds. Plus whole peppers.

Russ
 
I left them in some milk overnight in the fridge then put them in a pan to boil. The milk stuck to the pan, so I rushed them into the rest of my porridge recipe. Still no discernible flavour. Perhaps I'm not very discerning. I'll try toasting them dry then adding them.
 
Have you thought of trying another spice, apart from mustard?
Cumin goes well with cacao/chocolate, as do kalonji (nigella) seeds and freshly ground coriander seeds. Or you could go with cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg or mace.
 
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