Back in Egypt during the time of the pharaohs or during the Roman empire, evidence shows that they used mustards with their foods. However, mustard really didn’t start its road to prominence until the English (with their horseradish mustard) and the French (with their Dijon mustard) started toying with its formula hundreds of years later. However, I don’t think ANY of them had this sort of spicy mustard in mind when they tasted their own mustard concoctions. Leave it to a little hot & spicy ingenuity, but what they didn’t know is totally our gain.

Then again, doubtful that they had access to habanero and jalapeno peppers either.

That brings us to this mustard, Lee’s Sweet and Insane Mustard, which we picked up a few months ago and finally found a reason to crack it open and give it a taste. We’re never at a loss for finding good spicy mustard, probably because most of the commercially-made mustards that are dubbed as “spicy” are woefully bland and not so spicy. This one was definitely not going to fall into that category, judging by the ingredients:

Ingredients: mustard (water, mustard seed, vinegar, salt, white wine, citric acid, tartaric acid, spices), sugar, vinegar, habanero peppers, jalapeno peppers, wheat flour, cayenne

The aroma certainly doesn’t give away any sense of potency. In fact, it smells a little bit sweet…mostly vinegar and a little bit sugar. It’s not a bright yellow mustard by any stretch…in fact, it’s a little more like a brown mustard in appearance. Here’s a peek:

Taste: Initially, this does taste a little sweet. Like for about a second or two. Any sense of sugary sweetness melts away in favor of the habanero heat that follows. In fact, this is seriously one of the spicier mustards we have tried. Not sure if we could distinguish any contributions of the jalapeno pepper to the flavor, but it sure has some wonderful habanero flavor and heat which comes through first and foremost. Also, the very distinct mustard flavor is not so overwhelming with this either, making it a good choice for those that aren’t into that mustard taste as much (that means you, Passow!).

This mustard was great in nearly everything it was tried upon…from a sausage accompaniment to sandwich condiment to a mix-in for scrambled eggs. The flavor and heat just adds so much to every dish that you can scarcely go wrong with it on just about anything. Can’t wait to try this in something like chicken or egg salad to see how spicy that can be as well!

Overall recommendation: Room on your refrigerator shelf should be made for this spicy mustard from Lee’s Hot Mustard. A little sweet but a lot spicy, this is a condiment that a chilehead can really take pride in using. The only thing you won’t like is that you may use it up too quickly. Good habanero mustards are hard to come by, so take a chance and give this one a try at your house. Enjoy!

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