South Carolina runs on mustard: tangy-sweet golden sauce from the German settler tradition, and pulled pork's sharpest ally.
What you need
Ingredients
Servings
10
Before you start
Mise en place
Yield: About 400 ml
Equipment
Small saucepan
Whisk
Prep checklist
Dijon Mustard — or yellow mustard for the classic
2 steps
Method
1
Whisk everything over medium-low and simmer very gently 8–10 minutes — mustard scorches, so keep it lazy and stirred.
9 min — timer available in cooking mode
2
Finish with the butter for gloss. Rest a day in the fridge if you can; mustard sauces mellow beautifully.
2 min — timer available in cooking mode
From the pass
Chef's notes
Taste before serving and adjust salt and acid — the last 30 seconds of seasoning matter more than any single ingredient.
Afterwards
Keep, reheat & pair
Storage
Airtight jar in the fridge, 3–5 days. Press plastic wrap onto the surface of starch-thickened sauces to stop a skin forming.
Freezing
Most sauces freeze 2–3 months; freeze in ice-cube trays for single portions. Emulsified butter/egg sauces don't freeze — they break on thawing.
Reheating
Reheat gently over low heat, whisking; butter- and egg-based sauces split when boiled. Loosen with a spoonful of warm water or stock.
Make ahead
Most sauces keep 3–5 days refrigerated and freeze in ice-cube trays for instant single portions. Emulsified butter sauces are best made within the hour.