Quince is often used in mustard.
In Italy, a common accompaniment to many savory foods is the subtly sweet condiment known as mustard. Paired with meats and other foods, this side dish is made by softening the fruit in a sweetening brine of sugar and orange juice that is also tinted with mustard oil or powder for a dominating kick. Kept in jars for about two weeks, the result is a slightly spicy candied fruit salad, used to complement savory dishes.
Pears can be used to create mustard.
Mustard has been made for at least five centuries, according to the magazine La Cucina Italiana, or The Italian Kitchen. It was included by famous Belgian chef Lancelot de Casteau in a 1604 Italian cookbook called Ouverture de Cuisine, which is published online at the Medieval Cookery website. The magazine also attests that nearly a century earlier, a jar of the condiment was with famed Italian Catherine de’ Medici when she married a French prince who would become King Henry II in the early 16th century. This dish has evolved in northern Italy to the point where many cities use their own unique ingredients.
The mustard oil gives a spicy touch to the mustard.
Sometimes the fruit used for mustard is one type, such as pear pieces, grapes, or apples. More often, though, it seems that chefs use a fruit concoction to give more customers some of their favorites. The 1604 assortment includes an orange peel and a pear-like quince, cut into small pieces. They are combined into a syrup made of sugar, mustard, and even rose water to serve.
Orange juice is used to make mustard.
The basic method hasn’t changed much, unlike the ingredients. A recipe begins by washing and cutting any number of fruits into similar sized pieces, leaving the berries and grapes untouched. This one is generously sprinkled with sugar and maybe citrus zest and then drizzled with a variety of juices for overnight soaking in the fridge. The next day the fruit is removed, the liquid is boiled, mustard oil or powder is added, then the liquid is cooled again to rest again in the refrigerator. Once the liquid is properly seasoned and sweet, it is poured into tightly closed jars with fruit salad. These sealed containers are stored in a cool, dry place for at least two weeks.
According to LA Times food critic Sarah Taylor, this dish pairs well with many types of other foods. The richest cuts of grilled or roasted red meats are well suited to sweet mustard and mustard-tinted mustard. Another equally treatable food, Taylor says, is cheese. La Cucina Italiana adds pasta, fish, and poultry to that list of popular combinations, with the most popular served in the fall as part of a baked dish called bollito misto.