Mustard

Why mustard is rated low

Plain mustard comes in low, and that rating is estimated from what is in the jar rather than from a weighed serving in the lab: mustard seed, vinegar, water and salt, none of which bring a FODMAP subgroup with them. The published serving data for mustard is qualitative, and Any typical portion reads low, so a condiment-sized smear on a sandwich or whisked through a dressing is not what will trouble a meal. What matters on this page is everything that gets added to that simple base. Mustard is one of the most frequently messed-with condiments on the shelf, and once honey, garlic or onion joins the recipe, the jar in your hand is no longer the food this rating describes.

What changes your risk

• Sticking to a condiment portion The data covers Any typical portion, which means mustard as a condiment. Larger amounts than that are not tested here, so low is a verdict about the way people actually use mustard rather than a licence to treat it as unlimited.
• What the label adds to the seed Honey mustard leans on honey, and plenty of flavoured jars carry onion powder or garlic powder. Those ingredients bring their own load and are the single most common reason a mustard stops being the food described here. Turn the jar around before it goes in the basket.
• The rest of the meal, not the mustard Since mustard itself brings no subgroup to the table, the thing to watch is the overall FODMAP load of what you are eating. The bread, the sauce and the filling decide whether the sandwich adds up, so build them from gluten free bread or traditional sourdough spelt bread, hard cheese, plain meat and salad vegetables.
• Sauces built on mustard A honey mustard dip, a creamy mustard pan sauce or a bottled mustard dressing usually carries more than mustard. Cream and onion are common. Whisk your own with olive oil, vinegar and a little maple syrup, and use garlic-infused oil when you want an allium note.
• Heat does not change it Cooking mustard into a glaze or a pan sauce neither raises nor lowers FODMAP content, so what you end up with is decided by the other ingredients you added, not by how long it simmered.

What else works

There is no need to swap plain mustard for anything, so the useful list is the one that looks equivalent but is not. Honey mustard is built on honey, and garlic or onion flavoured mustards, mustard-based barbecue sauces and many deli special sauces carry onion powder, garlic powder or high fructose corn syrup. Plain yellow, Dijon and wholegrain mustards made from seed, vinegar, water and salt all fit the same description as the food rated here. When you want a different sharp note in the same role, olive oil with vinegar, chives, the green tops of spring onions and garlic-infused oil all fill it honestly.

How to keep it low

Read the ingredient list rather than the front of the jar, since the word Dijon or wholegrain tells you nothing about whether garlic and onion powder are in there. Keep one plain jar as your default so you are not checking labels every time, and make your own vinaigrette with olive oil, vinegar and a spoon of that mustard instead of buying a bottled dressing whose flavourings you cannot see. Eating out is where the risk sits: a sandwich shop's mustard is often a house sauce rather than a plain one, so ask for plain mustard by name, or ask for it on the side and use it yourself.

Common questions

is mustard low fodmap

Yes. Plain mustard made from mustard seed, vinegar, water and salt reads low at Any typical portion, which covers using it as a condiment.

is dijon mustard ok on the elimination phase

A plain Dijon with a simple seed, vinegar and salt base fits the same description as the mustard rated here. Check the label anyway, because some Dijon-style jars add garlic or onion.

what about honey mustard

Honey mustard is a different food. It is built on honey, which is not a low FODMAP ingredient, so it does not inherit plain mustard's rating.

is mustard powder the same as prepared mustard

The rating here describes prepared mustard from a jar. Powders and seasoning blends can include onion or garlic powder alongside the ground seed, so the ingredient list is what tells you what you have.