Description
Refer to MUSTARD, BROWN.
Chemical Properties
Herbaceous plant widespread in Europe, North and South America, New Zealand and Japan. The English variety is
highly esteemed. The plant is less than 1 m (39 in.) in height. It has a short root, erect branched stalk, alternate leaves, pale-yellow
flowers (June to August) and round, reddish-yellow seeds. The seeds are the parts used and the taste is more warm and pungent than
brown or black mustard. The mustard used in food is derived from B. alba L. Also see Mustard (Brown)
Chemical Properties
The mustard used in food is derived primarily from the seed of certain plants of the family Cruciferae. B. alba (L.) Boiss or Sinalis alba (L.) is the principal source of white mustard seed from which the product called yellow mustard is prepared. Yellow (or white) mustard is an herbaceous, native annual of southern Europe, but is now widely cultivated in many temperate regions, including North and South America, New Zealand, and Japan. The English variety is highly esteemed. The plant is less than 1 m (39 in.) in height; it has a short root, erect branched stalk, alternate leaves, pale-yellow flowers (June to August), and round, reddish-yellow seeds. The seeds are the part used. While black (brown) mustard has a lachrymatory, irritating, sharp odor, white mustard has more of a pungent, warm taste.
Mustard is used by the food industry in several forms: whole seed; ground seed meal; mustard cake (ground mustard seed from which a portion of the fixed oil has been expressed); mustard flour (ground mustard cake with hulls removed); and prepared mustard. Mustard flour and prepared mustard appear to be the forms most frequently used. Both may contain mustard from more than one source and, particularly in prepared mustard, may also contain a number of additional materials. In mustard flour, for example, blends of two or more mustard flours from different sources, together with mill fractions which the mustard miller has available, are often used to impart subtle flavors. In prepared mustards, as another example, food specifications permit their preparation from ground seed of white and/or black mustard, with or without mustard flour or mustard cake, together with vinegar and with or.
The principal constituent of yellow mustard is p-hydroxybenzyl isothiocyanate. It is present in the seed as part of the glucoside sinalbin from which it is released, together with glucose and sinap- ine bisulfate, by the action of myrosinase. Sinalbin mustard oil is only sparingly volatile with steam but can be separated by solvent extraction. About 3 or 4 percent of p-hydroxybenzyl isothiocyanate is present in the defatted flour of white mustard seed. When freshly prepared, sinalbin mustard oil is strongly pungent with a mildly burning taste, described as “mouth heat.” However, its principal constituent, p-hydroxybenzyl isothiocyanate, is highly unstable, and hydrolyzes in a matter of hours, at room temperature, to p-hydroxybenzyl alcohol, di(p-hydroxybenzyl)disulfide, p- hydroxybenzyl cyanide. These hydrolytic products do not contribute significantly to the flavor of prepared yellow mustard; added spices and other constituents of the seed such as sinapine (the choline ester of sinapic acid) are the chief sources of its flavor.
White Mustard Essential Oil: The essential oil of white mustard exhibits characteristics quite opposite to those of black mustard, i.e., little odor and a very sharp, pungent taste.
Chemical Properties
The mustards are herbaceous, annual or bienniel herbs widespread throughout Europe, North Africa and northern Asia.
B. nigra is cultivated chiefly in Italy and Holland, while B. juncea is cultivated in northern India and southern Russia. It grows more
than 1 m (39 in.) high with high primary roots and many secondary ones. It has an erect, branched stalk, alternate leaves, yellow flowers arranged in terminal clusters (June to August) and tiny, reddish-brown seeds. The seeds are the part used and it has a lacrimatory,
irritating, sharp odor (described as “nose-heat” or “horseradish-like bite”) due to isothiocyanate (Burdock, 1997).
Mustard is used by the food industry in several forms: whole seed, ground seed meal; mustard cake or press cake (ground mustard
seed from which a portion of the fixed oil has been expressed); mustard flour (ground mustard cake with hulls removed); and prepared
mustard. Mustard flour and prepared mustard appear to be the forms most frequently used
Chemical Properties
Produced by steam distillation of the residue (press-cakes) obtained after expressing the seeds of the oil. The essential
oil forms upon maceration of the comminuted seeds in warm water that releases sinigrin, a β-glucopyranoside, which is subsequently
enzymatically hydrolyzed to allyl isothiocyanate. It has a very intense odor having lacrimatory effects. The oil has a relatively poor
flavor
Physical properties
The oil is a clear, pale-yellow liquid. Allyl isothiocyanate content of oil is generally 90%. Allyl
isothiocyanate volatilizes easily, is lost from an open container within 4 to 6 months. It is also susceptible to decomposition in air
and ligh
Definition
Extractives and their physically modified derivatives. Brassica nigra, Cruciferae.
Essential oil composition
As prepared, the oil consists of more than 90% allyl isothiocyanate; the remainder is chiefly allyl cyanate
and carbon disulfide.
Essential oil composition
The pungency of mustard is the result of the presence of allyl isothiocynate. Allyl isothocyanate is produced
when the mustard is mixed with water and the enzyme myrosin hydrolyzes sinigrin, also present in seed (black and brown
mustard). Depending on the variety, the yield of allyl isothiocyanate is approximately 1%. Other components include sinapic acid,
sinapine, fixed oil, proteins and a mucilage.
Essential oil composition
The seeds do not produce any volatile substances when treated enzymatically. However, an enzymatic
hydrolysis produces a very pungent material: acrinyl isothiocyanate (p-hydroxybenzyl isothiocyanate). p-Hydroxybenzyl
isothiocyanate is highly unstable and hydrozyes rapidly at room temperature to p-hydroxybenzyl alcohol, di(p-hydroxybenzyl) disulfide, p-hydroxybenzyl cyanide. These hydrolytic products do not contribute significantly to flavor of prepared yellow mustard.
Added spices and other constituents of the seed, such as sinapine (the choline ester of sinapic acid), are the chief sources
of the flavor.
