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Where It's At
Dijon is the regional capital of the French
province of Burgundy. This is the town where
the Dukes of Burgundy had their residence in the fourteenth
century. Mustard was already growing in popularity
all over France but the Dukes ordered huge amounts of it to
be bought to Dijon for their feasts. So Dijon began making
mustard itself and by the eighteenth century it had become
the greatest mustard producing centre in France.
History
The first mustard recipe was written in AD 42, known as mustum
ardens - burning juice. The Romans were the first
to use the seeds to flavour and preserve food. Then in the
Thirteenth Century the French introduced mustard seeds to
farmers, however it was not until 1752 when Jean Naigeon replaced
the vinegar by the must of the unripe grapes giving it more
acidity and bite that Dijon secured it's famed mustard position.
Still to this day Dijon is the mustard capital of the universe,
there is even a Mustard Museum here and 90%
of the mustard eaten in France is Dijon style.
Mustard was originally used as a form of preserving. It concealed
the taste of meat that had been sitting around too long. These
days the French consume 50,000 tones of the stuff every year.
And in Dijon they like it hot.
Serving Suggestion
Today mustard is the recognised condiment to accompany beef.
Mustard stimulates your digestive juices and that is why it
goes particularly well with a heavy dish such as beef.
Today most of the mustard seeds are imported from Canada,
the world's biggest producer. Dijon Mustard gets its name
from the actual process that makes the mustard rather than
the location of where it is made.
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