Every year I make at least one trip to see a professional baseball game. Part of this is tradition (my father always found a way to get us to at least one game a year), part love of the game, and part of my excuse to indulge in a baseball treat – the hot dog.
Although we may not be discussing the hot dog today, we ARE going to take a look at America’s #2 favorite spice…
MUSTARD!
If truth be known, my baseball dog is always smothered in a generous helping of mustard. This year I was incredibly happy to find a choice between the mild, traditional yellow mustard and the bold, spicy brown mustard. Oh yes! It is the little things in life…
I have to admit, I did not know too much about the mustard plant before researching this post. I knew mustard could be spicy or sweet, bold or mild. But I did not know what caused all of these differences.
First of all, the mustard plant is in the same family as the cabbage.
Cabbage? Really?
Yep! The last thing I think of when diving into a serving of coleslaw is mustard, but the facts are there:
“Like the onion family, the cabbage family is a group of formidable chemical warriors with strong flavors.” (On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee)And, like with onion and garlic, we can utilize the four main concepts of science very easily within our study this week:
If you happened to read the last two blogs on the spicy nature of onions and garlic, you can probably guess how we can turn up the heat with ground mustard seeds.
Before we get started, you need to know that each individual mustard seed is a single CELL that has the possibility of growing into a mustard plant. And, like within each CELL of onions and garlic, mustard seeds have separate areas where certain molecules (groups of ATOMS) can be found. The ATOMS within two of these molecules tend to reorganize very well once you start mixing them together.
And, as stated by the LAW OF CONSERVATION, you never create or destroy any of the ATOMS during this rearrangement.
HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM
There is one large difference between the cells of onions, garlic, and mustard seeds:
MUSTARD SEEDS DO NOT CONTAIN AS MUCH LIQUID AS ONIONS AND GARLIC!
Once you grind mustard seeds into a powder, the two molecules that are responsible for generating an extremely spicy flavor cannot DIFFUSE into each other very well on their own. They need some kind of fluid to allow them to mix together and start rearranging their ATOMS.
You can add different kinds of fluids to produce different flavors of mustard. Most of the mustards we eat are mixed together with acidic liquids like vinegar, wine, or fruit juices. Each of these liquids produces mustards with unique flavors.
TIMING TIMING TIMING
Remember – when the molecules within the mustard seeds have a chance to DIFFUSE into each other, their ATOMS rearrange into different (spicier) molecules. The “spiciness” of the mustard depends on the DENSITY of the new molecules that are formed.
The DENSITY of these new spicy molecules will continue to increase as the ATOMS from the two DIFFUSING molecules are allowed to rearrange themselves.
Think of this as a car that is constantly speeding up until it finally runs out of gas. Once the fuel (the two molecules) has run out, the car cannot go as fast (the amount of the spicy molecule decreases.)
Basically, once you mix the ground seeds with a liquid, the spiciness of the mustard will increase until it peaks after 10-15 minutes when most of the “fuel” runs out and no more ATOMS are left to be rearranged.
THE SECRET BEHIND THE HEAT
There is a little trick behind the creation of mustard. Once the contents of the mustard seed are mixed together and are allowed to DIFFUSE into each other by the addition of liquid, you can control how spicy your mustard can get! How can you do this?
CHANGE THE TEMPERATURE OF THE LIQUID
What does temperature have to do with all these rearranging ATOMS?
As you know, all ATOMS are in constant motion. We’ve been talking about that since we took a look at the science of bacon. And once we add some heat energy, these ATOMS start speeding up and moving away from each other pretty quick.
This is really bad if you are trying to form some spicy molecules!
So, if the temperature of the liquid you add to ground mustard is warmer, you are going to have fewer spicy molecules and much milder mustard. And if you want a really hot mustard, simply cool down your liquid before adding it into the mix.
Cool, huh?
Onions, garlic, and mustards all have their hot moments. But next week, we will be looking at the true master of spicy foods. Get some soothing milk ready because here comes the CHILI PEPPERS!
Learn more about these chemistry concepts in Classic Science: Chemistry for the Family and be certain to come back every Thursday or subscribe to The Blog of Mr.Q to learn more about how to teach science during breakfast, lunch, and dinner!
