This can be used in all sorts of dishes to add more texture compared to bog-standard mustard. It’s delicious on a sandwich with ham and cheese, or add it to smoked trout, potato salad, vinaigrette, etc. Recipe from Kachka: A Return to Russian Cooking by Bonnie Frumkin Morales. New York: Flatiron Books, 2017.

Note: If you’ve had the mustard seeds in your spice drawer for a while, try soaking them for an hour or so before starting this recipe to help soften them up. If they’re really tough, add another 1/2 cup of water and simmer for another 15 minutes or so.

3/4 c. water
3/4 c. apple cider vinegar
1/2 c. yellow mustard seeds
1/4 c. granulated sugar*
2 tsp. kosher salt

*This recipe makes a sweet mustard, so you can scale back the sugar if you want it less sweet.

Place all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Hot vinegar is aromatic, so you might want to run your fan during this process. Reduce the heat until it’s just high enough to maintain a gentle simmer, and cook until the liquid is absorbed and the mustard seeds have swelled and softened (about 1 hour). 

Optional step: You can make pickled raisins (for cabbage pirogi or any other reason) by adding 1/2 c. golden raisins to the saucepan along with an additional 1/4 c. water when the mustard seeds are done. Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat, letting the raisins cool and swell in the residual heat, absorbing the pickled flavors. Store in the refrigerator.