On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 800

the surfaces of oil droplets and thus stabilize
such sauce emulsions as mayonnaise and
vinaigrette (p. 628). The seedcoat of white
mustard is especially rich in mucilage (up to
5% of the seed weight), and ground white
mustard is used in sausages to help bind the
meatparticlestogether.
Mustardoilisatraditionalcookingoilin
PakistanandinNorthernIndia,whereitlends
adistinctiveflavortoBengalifishdishes,
pickles,andotherpreparations.Inmuchofthe
West,thesaleofmustardoilforfooduseis
illegal,fortworeasons:itcontainslarge
quantitiesofanunusualfattyacid,erucic
acid;anditcontainsirritatingisothiocyanates.
Erucicacidcausesheartdamageinlaboratory
animals;itssignificanceforhumanhealth
isn’tknown.Thoughourmustardcondiments
containthesameisothiocyanatesasmustard
oil,it’spossiblethatdailyexposurethrough
foodscookedintheoilcouldhaveharmful
long-termeffects.Sofar,medicalstudiesare


inconclusive.InAsia,it’sthoughtthat
preheatingtheoiltothesmokingpoint
reducesisothiocyanatecontent.
Horseradish Horseradish is a west Asian
cabbage
relative,Armoracia rusticana,
remarkableforlargefleshywhiterootsrichin

sinigrin and its volatile pungent compound.
Horseradishpungencydevelopswhentheraw
rootisgrated,orwhenthegrounddriedrootis
rehydrated.Horseradishdoesn’tseemtohave
been cultivated in Europe until the Middle
Ages; today it’s used as a relish or dressing
for meats and seafood, often in the company
ofcreamtotaketheedgeoffitsstrongflavor.
Wasabi Wasabi is the enlarged stem of an
East Asian cabbage relative that also
accumulates sinigrin as a chemical defense.
Wasabia japonica is a native of Japan and
SakhalinIsland,whereitgrowsalongsidecool
mountain streams. Wasabi is now cultivated
in several countries and is occasionally