Violet Mustard

  Posted on March 20, 2012  by Leslie Blythe  1 comment

Violet Mustard is a Limousin mustard speciality that was created centuries ago and its recipe has been on the verge of being lost several times in history due to – a difficult to understand – lack of interest! It is prepared from over ripe black grapes.

The traditional Brive mustard is definitely part of the Limousin food and gastronomy scene and is generally served with the famous limousine beef, veal, duck or blood sausage. It is also excellent as an ingredient to flavor sauces.

Known since the 13th century, this Limousin speciality is most renowned since Pope Clement VI, who was born in the area and was homesick because of the Vatican food, asked a local manufacturer to prepare specialities based on violet mustard for him.

The violet mustard from Brive is created from the mixture of seeds of mustard with black grapes must, wine vinegar and spices.  It makes a superb vinaigrette. Companies still produce this traditional Limousin mustard. Here are a few companies – Earthy Delights and Zingerman’s.  Amazon has it, but it’s twice the price.  The recipe below is from The New York Times and uses red grapes.

Violet Mustard 

Makes about 2 cups

2 cups red wine
2 cups red seedless grapes
1 cup ruby port
1 cup whole-grain mustard
1/2 cup Dijon mustard

Bring the wine, grapes and port to a boil in a medium saucepan. Boil until the liquid is almost gone and the mixture turns syrupy, 15 to 20 minutes. Purée mixture in a blender, then pass through a fine sieve. Set aside to cool. Add the mustards and stir to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use.