What do most sauces have in common? They are usually the concentrated essence of some product. For example, most French saucemaking is based on some form of reduction, which means boiling to remove the water from some liquid so all that is left is the essence — you take a broth made out of the bones of fish, veal or chicken or some other animal and boil it down until its flavor is intensified and it naps the plate and coats the palate. Or you make a reduction of some alcohol or acid, cooking it down to a syrup, and finish it with butter. Even olive oil, the favorite sauce of the Mediterranean, is really the essence of the olive, with all the water removed.
I developed this cranberry mustard recipe as a glaze for a confit of pork belly which is featured on the winter menu at Olivéa. Rather than using whole cranberries, this recipe calls for a good amount of cranberry juice — two quarts — which is boiled down to a single cup of cranberry syrup, then mixed with mustard powder, vinegar, sugar and ginger. The finished product cuts through the richness of the belly and fairly screams cranberry on the palate.
Cranberry is an ingredient traditionally associated with turkey and Thanskgiving, but it works just as well with pork and any cold-weather month. The sweet-tart, fruity flavor of cranberry complements richer cuts of pork, especially pork belly, the fatty cut that is used to make bacon.
Cranberry Mustard
Makes about 2-3 cups
Ingredients
4 tablespoon dry mustard powder
4 tablespoons water
2 quarts cranberry juice
2 cups distilled vinegar
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and minced
Pinch salt
Directions
In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard powder and water. Set aside for at least 1 hour.
In a large pan, reduce the cranberry juice to about 1 cup. Cool.
In a small pot over medium heat, reduce the vinegar, sugar and ginger until thick and syrupy. Whisk in the mustard paste and the reduced cranberry juice. Add the salt and transfer the cranberry mustard to a small bowl and chill thoroughly before using.
Note: If once the mustard is chilled, it is still loose, place it in a pot and simmer until thickened.
