| "Some particularly fiery tracklements have chilli peppers added to bring them to a 10 rating." | | Rick Wilson |
As a seven year old living in Norfolk I remember my father having his cooked breakfast of bacon, egg and fried bread and always a little mound of the yellow stuff at the side of the plate. Mum used to vigorously stir a fresh mix from the yellow tin just before Sunday lunch but I had never been offered any mustard until I raided the pantry and found the little brown pot with its lid with a spoon slot. I used my finger to scoop out a generous portion and deposited it onto my tongue. I swallowed some and then ran to the kitchen sink to flush out the remaining mustard and cool my mouth.
 | | Firemans and Al'Acienne mustards |
I didn’t try any more until as a teenager I visited the newly opened Wimpy Bar and applied some mustard to my burger as a dare. It wasn’t at all as I remembered it as the commercial heavily preserved version was much sweeter. Then began my quest to try other varieties and collect their jars and containers. Travelling from North Norfolk to Norwich we passed masses of yellow flowering plants as the fields close to the Coleman’s factory were given over to the mustard harvest. Once in Norwich the Mecca for mustard gourmets was the Mustard Shop at 15 The Royal Arcade with a selection of tasty Coleman’s mixes. There are basically two forms of prepared mustard; the whole grain of the mustard seed and the milled version which produces the familiar yellow ‘flour’. The variations of this condiment comes from the ingredients added to the mustard.
 | | Scottish, Harrods and Martlet mustards |
Water added to the basic flower and stirred to a thick paste to produce the traditional English style and eaten fresh is quite hot – 8 on a scale of 1 to 10 of increasing hotness. Other varieties have wine or wine vinegar added producing the French or Dijon versions rating a 5. Wholegrain varieties often have herbs or more exotic ingredients added, such as beer, whisky, horseraddish, curry or honey. Some particularly fiery tracklements have chilli peppers added to bring them to a 10 rating. Some interesting pots in my collection include Fireman’s, Scottish with whisky, French traditional, Gun Powder (phew!), Arcy Varcy, a Munchen senf pot, Wally’s Pot Mosterd (sweet South African) West Country Tracklements, a Coleman’s Silver Jubilee tin and no collection would be complete without a visit to Harrods’ food hall. Caution take in moderation as a meal enhancer and don’t scorch your taste buds . | 
