Earlier this year, I picked up a copy of the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. I immediately became somewhat obsessed with making homemade mustard.
At the time, though, I was busy with canning all of the fresh fruits and veggies that were in season. I was busy making jams, salsas, and pickles. So, I put a quick post-it note in the section of the book that had all of the homemade mustard recipes, and I made a mental note to revisit it later on when I had some more time.
A few weeks ago, my husband was out of town for a few days, and I had some extra time to spend in the kitchen. I knew it was the perfect time to give the homemade mustards a try. I decided to start with cranberry mustard. I had just started seeing some fresh cranberries at the store, so I picked up a few bags and set out to finally conquer the homemade mustard I’d been thinking about for a few months.
The process of making the mustard was actually a lot easier than I had expected. I didn’t get started making it until late one evening, but it was simple enough to tackle before I ran out of energy after being on my feet in the kitchen most of the day. In just a few short hours, I had the mustard prepared, canned, and resting on my counter top. And, of course, I was dipping pretzels in a little bit that was left over.
I’ve had some store bought cranberry mustards before, and I have to say that this mustard doesn’t taste much like them. It’s not as sweet as you might expect. In fact, it’s quite tart from the cranberries, and even a bit bitter. But, it has a great mustard flavor. Next time, though, I may substitute apple cider vinegar for the red wine vinegar (which is a safe switch since they have the same 5% acidity). I do like it the way it is, though, and I think it’s great on ham sandwiches. I also love to dip honey wheat pretzel twists in it!
Of course, if you don’t love the sharp mustard flavor, you can use it to make a sweeter mustard dip. I’ll share another recipe that utilizes the mustard soon! In the meantime, though, stock up on mustard seeds and cranberries, and give this simple mustard a try!
Cranberry Mustard
(Makes approximately 7 4-ounce jars, from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving)
- 1 cup red wine vinegar
(or apple cider vinegar) - 2/3 cup yellow mustard seeds
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 3/4 cups fresh cranberries
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
(you could safely add a bit more) - 1/4 cup ground mustard
- 2 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
In a saucepan over high heat, bring the vinegar to a boil. Remove from the heat and add the mustard seeds, stirring to combine. Cover the saucepan and let the mixture rest at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hours. The seeds will absorb most of the liquid.
Prepare your boiling water canner and sterilize your jars, lids, and bands, leaving the jars in the hot (but not boiling) water until ready to fill.
Meanwhile, add the water and Worcestershire sauce to the mustard seeds in the saucepan. Use an immersion blender to blend the mixture until mostly smooth. (You could also transfer the mixture to a standard blender.) Add in the cranberries and continue to blend until well chopped.
Heat the mixture over medium heat, bringing it to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to boil gently for approximately five minutes. Whisk in the sugar, ground mustard and allspice. Continue to simmer over medium-low heat, cooking the mixture until it has reduced by about a third. This should take 15 – 20 minutes.
Fill the prepared jars with the mustard, leaving 1/4-inch of headspace in each jar. Fit with lids and bands. Process the jars (4-ounce jars) in boiling water for 10 minutes. Let the jars stand in the canner (with the lid off) for 5 minutes before removing them and allowing them to cool at room temperature.
First time canning? Be sure to check out these guidelines for boiling water canning! I have done my best to ensure that this recipe is safe for canning, and I used a reputable source. However, it is always important to double check the guidelines to make sure a recipe is safe for canning.
Please Note – The links to the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving provided in this post are Amazon affiliate links.
i reallllly love mustard – am such a fan of it that there are usually 5-6 containers in my fridge and i am constantly trying new ones. this sounds right up my alley… and is also such a gorgeous color!
I just sent this to my mom and asked her to make it for me! The Ball cookbook is her go to for everything. It would make a fantastic little homemade xmas gift as well!
Your timing is perfect….cranberry mustard will be just the condiment for turkey sandwiches!
Hey Jen – I’ve made 2 batches of mustard since this summer. I wrote about the one where I used Craisins here
http://elisabethjeancustom.blogspot.com/2011/06/mmmmmmmaking-mmmmmmmustard.html
My second batch (at the hub’s request) I used only yellow seeds & used white wine for half of the soaking solution. Both recipes are household (& gifty!) staples now…
What a gorgeous color. I love both mustard and cranberries! Perfect timing.
Sounds delicious. And perfect for our Thanksgiving potluck… thank you!
This looks great! You should consider entering them in my Power of Pink Challenge
That looks wonderful.
You totally just blew my mind with this; I’ve never heard of different kinds of mustard before other than the usual. This definitely going on my canning list!
I love the cranberry mustard from Hickory Farms that comes in the gift sets. You can’t buy it alone though. So I am so glad I found your recipe for cranberry mustard. I think I will have to give it a try.
You actualy can buy it separately! During the holidays, my local shopping malls have mini hickory farms stores/kiosks in th middle of the mall and they sell all kinds of gift baskets, candies, cheeses, sausages, etc. A few years ago I noticed, to my delight, they carry huge squeeze bottles of their cranberry mustard. I buy like 3 or 4 bottles every year! I know not all malls might do this, but its worth checking into I you love that stuff as much as I do! :-)
Looks wonderful. I will be trying this soon!
I bought some cranberry mustard at the store and I love it! I have been looking for the perfect recipe to make at home and I keep coming back to yours but I am wondering if this recipe tastes more like yellow or spicy/brown mustard? The kind I tried and enjoyed was spicy/brown. Are there alterations to your recipe that I could make to turn the recipe into “brown cranberry mustard?”
Hi, Nicole – It is more of a yellow mustard… To make it more of a brown mustard, you could simply buy brown mustard seeds instead of yellow mustard seeds. Hope you enjoy it!
I just made this using cider vinegar, substituting natural apple cider for the water, and cutting the sugar to 2/3 cup. It is just lovely! Thanks so much!