What is Mustard?

Mustard is a kind of plant species which is commonly used as a spice. It is used commonly by grinding the seeds which when mixed with water creates a yellow spread known as prepared mustard. All of the enzymes and oils in the mustard seed are released when the seeds are broken and converted to ground mustard.

An oil known as mustard oil can also be extracted from the mustard seeds by pressing them. The leaves of the mustard plant are edible and can also be eaten as mustard greens. The Mustard Plant is entirely different from Salvadora persica which is also known as Mustard Bush.

Types of Mustard

There is a fundamental difference between types of mustard seeds and different types of mustard condiments. We will first look at the type of seeds which are one of the two basic parts of the mustard plant. Then we will look at the different condiments of mustard.

Basically, there are two types of Mustard seeds – Yellow Mustard Seeds and Brown Mustard Seeds.

Yellow Mustard Seeds

Yellow Mustard seeds are the most commonly available mustard seeds and are the most used ones too. They are also referred to as white mustard seeds in some store labels. Yellow Mustard seeds have a mild flavor.

In fact, they have the mildest flavor among all of the kinds of mustard seeds. This is why Yellow Mustard Seeds are the most commonly used Mustard Seeds for most of the recipes for mustard spreads.

Yellow Mustard is the kind of mustard which is more commonly used in fast foods like Hot Dogs and similar items. It is also known as the American Mustard.

Yellow Mustard as the name suggests is a bright yellow condiment of mustard which is prepared from Yellow Mustard seeds which are relatively less spicy than the Brown Mustard seeds. It constitutes a mild but bright flavor and is prepared by mixing yellow mustard seeds with vinegar and grounding the mustard seeds.

This is the go-to mustard for home use and is usually found in people’s refrigerators to be used with hamburgers, hot dogs or as a barbecue sauce.

Brown Mustard Seeds

Brown Mustard is a type of mustard which has more spicier and more pungent seeds when compared to the yellow or white variants of the seeds. This kind of mustard is widely used in various Indian and other Asian cuisines because of its sharp and assertive flavor.

It is often used by blending with yellow seeds in other cuisines like American due to their spiciness.

Mustard Seeds

Mustard Seeds are fruit pods which can be extracted from the mustard plant which belongs to the Brassica family of plants. It is widely used as a culinary oil-seed since ancient times.

Other members of the Brassica family which share similar properties to the Mustard Plant are Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussel-Sprouts, etc. Mustard Seeds are known in the scientific community by its scientific name which is “Brassica Juncea”.

Mustard seeds were originally found in the Asia Minor region. However, nowadays the Mustard Plant is being grown all over the world as a commercial crop in countries like Canada, India, China and in European regions with a temperate climate.

The Mustard Plant is a winter crop. The height of the Mustard Plant reaches up to four to five feet. The flower of the Mustard Plant is yellow in color which contains the small and spherical mustard seeds. The mustard seeds are about one millimeter in diameter and are protected by a fruit pod.

Uses of mustard seeds, oil, paste, leaves, and powder

Mustards are a rich provider of minerals that are good for our wellbeing. Zinc, manganese, copper, iron, calcium as well as Selenium are a portion of the minerals particularly packed in Mustard Seeds.

Calcium is an essential component in repairing and building bones and teeth. Copper is an essential component in the creation of red platelets and blood cells. Iron is also required by the body to form Red Blood Cells (RBCs) and also for digestion at a cellular level.

This is why Mustard Seeds, Oils, Pastes, Leaves and Powder are consumed in different ways to get health benefits out of them. Mustard Seeds are used to relieve pain particularly Muscle Pains. Mustard Oil is applied to the scalp to facilitate hair growth. Ground Mustard Seeds acts as a laxative which helps in secretion of intestinal juices.

Health Benefits of Mustard

Mustard is generally regarded as a spice with health benefits. It is true scientifically as mustard seeds are rich in healthy vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and also antioxidants.

Mustard Seeds are also very high in calories. A hundred grams of Mustard Seeds contains approximately 508 calories. This is why Mustard Seeds are considered as one of the chief oilseeds.

Mustard Seeds are also made up of beneficial proteins, vitamins, minerals, oils as well as dietary fiber which help in digestion.

Mustard seeds are also rich in fundamental oils and also plant sterols. A portion of the essential sterols incorporates, for example, brassicasterol, campesterol, stigmasterol, avenasterol, as well as sitosterol.

A portion of the glucosinolate and unsaturated fats in the seeds are sinigrin, eicosanoic, erucic, myrosin, oleic, as well as palmitic acids.

Mustard Nutrition

Mustard seeds are a rich provider of basic B-complex nutrients, for example, folates, pyridoxine (vitamin B-6), thiamin, riboflavin, niacin as well as pantothenic acid.

These nutrients are fundamental as the body requires them from outer sources to recharge. These B-complex varieties of nutrients help in catalyst amalgamation, functioning of the nervous system and managing body digestion.

A hundred grams of mustards give approximately 4.733 mg of niacin which contains vitamin B-3. Niacin is a member of nicotinamide coenzymes that are essential for bringing down blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Mustard seeds contain flavonoid and carotenoid cancer prevention agents (antioxidants), for example, lutein, zeaxanthin, as well as carotenes.

Also, the seeds have a minute quantity of nutrient antioxidants, for example, vitamin C, vitamin K as well as vitamin A.

Mustard seeds are an optimal provider of nutrient E, gamma tocopherol. A hundred grams of mustard seeds contain about 19.82 milligrams of Gamma tocopherol which is about 132 percent of the recommended dietary allowance.

Mustard Side-effects

All in all, mustard seeds and its oils are considered to be optimal for human utilization when utilized in little sums. An expansive amount of mustard may cause gastric troubles, stomach bleeding as well as intestinal mucosa in some cases. It might cause burning of the skin when left over the skin for long stretches of time.

The Erucic acid present in mustard has been found to have conceivable genotoxic and cancer-causing impacts in research animal studies.

Also, taking a lot of dark mustard seed by mouth can harm the throat and can likewise cause different genuine symptoms including heart failure, sleepiness, breathing troubles, unconsciousness, drowsiness and even death in extreme cases.

FAQs

Is mustard good for weight loss?

Only eating mustard wouldn’t make you achieve your weight loss objectives. In any case, adding mustard to an eating routine that is otherwise loaded with low calorie and low-fat solids can help your body in burning fat faster.

Is mustard good for skin?

Mustard contains Nutrient E, which is a ground-breaking lipid dissolvable anti oxidant which is useful for keeping up the strength of the outer cell membrane of mucosa and skin by shielding it from unsafe radicals that are free of oxygen.

Is mustard good for hair growth?

The act of rubbing mustard oil into the scalp region to regrow hair goes back to nearly four thousand years ago. Other than facilitating the regrowth of your hair, rubbing your scalp with mustard oil strengthens your scalp and can lessen migraines.