3 Rules to Ensure the Perfect Pairing of Mustard and Cheese
Chutneys, jams and honey are staples on cheese boards and often folded into recipes with cheese. Why not mustards, too? Like these other condiments, mustards flaunt a range of sweet to savory, varying textures (smooth to grainy) and different cultural influences, as anyone who’s tasted a German, British or French mustard already knows.
“People often do not think of mustards with cheese,” says Barry Levenson, founder of National Mustard Museum in Middleton, Wisconsin, and author of The Art of Mustard. But shouldn’t they? In some parts of the world, pairing mustards with cheese is nothing new. “In Bourgogne-Franche-Comté [France] it is in good taste to associate a good Dijon mustard from Burgundy or Dijon with Comté. A few dabs are enough. It boosts the subtle and floral flavors of the fromage,” says Charles Duque, Managing Director of the Americas for CNEIL (the French Dairy Board). Duque also oversees the French Cheese Board, a New York City retail and event space. “Grain mustard is also used with Cancoillotte, a runny cheese from the [same] region. The striking and crunchy seeds of a grain mustard with 16% white wine meld perfectly well.”
Many of the pairing rules that apply when matching cheese with any other food, beverage or condiment also work for mustard. Consider contrasting flavors and textures, along with regional overlap (a Wisconsin cheese with a Wisconsin mustard, for instance). That the cheese and the mustard share the same terroir and cultural food habits means something. In Burgundy, France, at least two cheeses are made with mustard: the Délice de Pommard and Brillat-Savarin. Both are triple-crème. “The tangy, peppery and mustardy notes work harmoniously with the creamy richness of these Burgundy specialties,” says Duque. “Combining products from the same region is one of the golden rules of pairing.” But before you get to pairing, make sure you are using fresh mustard. As a connoisseur of mustards, Levenson is often surprised to learn that most people don’t know mustard can expire. This is usually in about two years. “Even though it doesn’t spoil, it loses its intensity,” he says, adding another tip: “Refrigerate your mustard even before opening.”
Three rules for pairing cheeses and mustards
Master cheese grader Craig Gile at Cabot Creamery Cooperative in Vermont shares three handy rules for pairing cheese and mustard. “If you stick to those three rules, you’ll probably have a fun time exploring,” says Gile.
But before you begin, start by evaluating the cheese’s (or mustard’s) taste. Is it salty, sweet, bitter or sour? “I like to look at it not so much on the flavor side but the basic taste,” says Gile. You might also consider flavor components. With a Vermont cheddar, says Gile, flavor components are bitter, high in acid, and sour.
Match intensities
How intense is the cheese (or mustard)? If you’ve got a young, barely aged cheddar then pairing with a spicy stone-ground mustard will not be a good food memory. The mustard will overpower the subtle cheese. Likewise, if you’re taking a Roquefort and opting for a sweet honey mustard, the cheese will crowd out the mustard’s flavor. For a fresh goat cheese (like Vermont Creamery’s) or Winnimere from Jasper Hill Farm, another Vermont creamery, says Gile, the “buttery, fresh salt flavors” in the goat cheese and “soft runny insides” with Winnimere are nice alternatives to cheddar, Vermont’s most recognized cheese.
When Levenson recently scored a 16-year sharp Wisconsin cheddar, “I couldn’t resist digging into it [with mustard]. It’s got enough bite and backbone that it would take to a strong mustard,” he says. “If you pair it with a mild mustard it doesn’t do a thing to it. You need a good English mustard like Colman’s. Or even Dijon. You need something that’s going to stand up to the cheese.”
2. Contrast flavors
Along those lines, matching like with like equals, well, boring. What is the point of bringing in a second flavor if it’s exactly the same, right? This is what makes mustard-cheese pairings so fun: both have many, many options for sweet and sour. If there’s black pepper or Sriracha (or some other form of “heat”) in the cheese, by all means turn to a sweet-tinged mustard.
“With a smooth cheese, I like to have a grainy mustard,” says Levenson. With Wisconsin Brick cheese he especially likes a spicy, grainy mustard.
This is not to say you should veer as far in the opposite direction as possible. Think about what flavors are complementary, not jarring. “Combining tangy and sweet or buttery and savory” are two tips from Duque.
3. Contrast textures
If you’ve ever eaten a crumbly food on top of well, another food that breaks apart, it’s basically a mess. But graham-cracker crumbs on top of silky-smooth cheesecake, or roasted nuts or toasted seaweed on top of slippery ramen noodles? Instant nirvana. Think about the sensation on your palate and steer away from symmetry. Along those lines, a chunky stone-ground mustard (not spicy) would go with a young cheddar due to its incredible structure. Conversely, a crumbly aged cheddar with a thin, sweetly accented mustard is a solid match.
“Triple crèmes benefit from a grain Dijon mustard since it adds texture to the creamy cheese,” says Duque.
Pairing ideas
Master cheese grader Gile can’t forget the backyard BBQ with friends where they grilled kielbasa kebobs tossed in a smoky dry rub, grated three-year cheddar on top and drizzled with sweet mustard. “All the textures were slightly different,” he says. “The cheese brought in bitterness and acid while the mustard was bringing in some sweetness. There was fat and salt in the meat. All intensity levels were on bar and no flavor blasted the other out of the water.”
Of course, you can’t go wrong with a dollop of mustard on a cheese board—only it’s best not to put it directly on the board. Instead, Gile suggests ceramic ramekins or tiny glass jars with a small spoon to keep things tidy, otherwise you may end up with cross-contamination, such as Dijon dripping on fresh strawberry slices.
Duque has a few twists on simply placing the mustards and cheeses on a cheese board. There are ways you can doctor them up to suit the seasons. “A tangy citrusy aged or fresh goat cheese can be paired with several flavored Dijon mustards such as blackcurrant or honey and balsamic vinegar to create something new,” says Duque. “A Brillat-Savarin or Saint André can be cut in half and layered with basil, tarragon or walnut infused Dijon mustard.”