Pommery mustard

Pommery Mustard by Moutarde de Meaux in a stoneware crock

Pommery Mustard by Moutarde de Meaux is the coarse mustard specialty from the Brie region, where whole and ground seeds lie side by side to provide a mild zest. In 2019, the World-Wide Mustard Competition named it the best mustard in its class.

Pommery Mustard is the coarse table mustard from Moutarde de Meaux, produced by Les Assaisonnements Briards in Nanteuil-lès-Meaux near Paris. Water, mustard seeds, spirit vinegar, salt, and spices make up the coarse paste, which is stored in a 500-gram stoneware crock under a cork sealed with red wax.

Gentle heat and a grainy bite

Pommery Mustard tastes milder than its coarse appearance suggests, with a clear, tangy vinegar acidity underlying the spice.

Some of the seeds go into the pot whole, others ground, creating the interplay between soft paste and little, bursting spheres. The heat rises briefly and then settles rather than lingering, allowing a warm, slightly peppery spice to have the final word.

Mustard seeds, spirit vinegar, and spices strike a quiet balance here, without one ingredient overpowering the other—grainy, spicy, and rounded all at once. For those who like coarse mustard, this is a milder, more well-rounded interpretation.

With cold roast, poultry, and potatoes

Cold roast, roasted poultry, and an old-fashioned vinaigrette are the dishes for which the manufacturer recommends this mustard.

Because it holds up well to heat, it works just as well in warm sauces as it does served cold, and in a Croque Monsieur, it disappears between the cheese and ham without being lost.

For mashed potatoes with good butter, it takes little more than a spoonful, and a coarse game pâté gains structure from it. It is a staple for the cheese board, where it holds its own alongside mature hard cheese and a piece of rustic bread. Further varieties can be found in our mustard selection.

The secret of the canons since 1760

The recipe originates from the canons of the Meaux Chapter, who passed it on to the miller Jean-Baptiste Pommery in 1760.

Alongside his mustard production, Pommery operated a quarry for millstones, and his family guarded the blend for several generations. Mustard from Meaux had been gracing the royal table since as early as 1632, a privilege commemorated to this day by the year on the crock. Brillat-Savarin, the great chronicler of French cuisine, simply called it the mustard of gourmets.

Today, the fifth generation of the Chamois family stirs it just outside the gates of Meaux, using the same recipe of carefully selected seeds. Sixty kilometers east of Paris lies the city whose name has been a guarantee of quality for this mustard since the Middle Ages. You can find more about the house at Moutarde de Meaux.

The mustard rests under red sealing wax

The stoneware crock comes sealed with a natural cork, over which red sealing wax has been poured, keeping the mustard protected from light.

Pull off the red strip, break the wax, and lift out the cork to open the crock. Once opened, the mustard will keep its flavor in the refrigerator for many weeks, provided its surface does not dry out. And once the last drop is gone, you are left with a kiln-fired clay vessel that will find a purpose in any kitchen.