Me and mustards have a sometimes peculiar relationship. Don’t get me wrong; I’m a lover of a fine, flavorful mustard. Yet I’m picky, fussy, and hard to please in a number of ways when it comes to the pungent condiment. I’m a fan of the straight, bright yellow table mustard, but only in a certain limited range of applications. I go crazy for a sweet and spicy honey mustard with incredible depth, a good deal of sweetness and an overall smoothness to taste the extremely sharp edge off.

But an ultra-bitter, nasal-y, sharp, horseradish, or a whole-grain mustard? My view on them can vary from unsavory to that of “I can’t wipe off my tongue enough after sampling it!”. So if you want me to like a mustard, it had better delivery on several different fronts or else it’s not going to please my finicky tongue.

El Diablo Hot and Spicy Mustards is a fairly new company that aims to change the game when it comes to fiery mustards. And make no mistake, El Diablo is not ashamed of the “spicy” moniker, as their marketing mentions, “flavors so powerful, so hot, so intense…not even the devil could resist”. But can their flavors – namely Mango, Smokey Chipotle, Steakhouse, Texas Chili, Jalapeno, and Habanero Hot & Spicy Mustards – fit in squarely with my particular palette? Well read on to find out if I liked these…

Mango

Ingredients:
Distilled vinegar, water, #1 grade mustard seed, mango puree and sugar. contains less than 2% of: salt, spices, natural flavors, sodium benzoate & potassium sorbate (as preservatives), turmeric and pectin.

Summary:
Let’s kick off the six reviews by tackling the El Diablo’s Mango Hot & Spicy Mustard. At its base, Mango has a fairly likable base, with complexity, flavor grittiness and a nice balance of tones. In terms of spiciness, there is a minimal amount both in the chile pepper and mustard seed territories, and lets the core taste with its moderate sweetness take center stage.  Yes, the mango is there even if it’s not immediately identifiable as the particular fruit and it’s certainly not highly dominant.

Because of the sweeter nature, this may not be the best choice for savory meats like beef. Chicken, fish or pork? You betcha! And don’t let that aspect fool you; El Diablo’s Mustard is still surprisingly versatile and a good treat on most items on which you like to slather mustard.

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Smokey Chipotle

Ingredients:
Distilled vinegar, water, #1 grade mustard seed, chipotle puree and sugar. contains less than 2% of: salt, natural flavors, spices, sodium benzoate & potassium sorbate (as preservatives), turmeric and pectin.

Summary:
One of the true stars of El Diablo’s lineup is their Smokey Chipotle Mustard. This is the all-around, tightrope-walking balance of flavor notes and crisp pungency I was craving! Even the the “Chipotle” title denotes the usage of the chipotle pepper (which in all actuality is a smoked jalapeno), it’s not loaded with tons of smoky sensuality.  There’s just enough chipotle presence to darken up the overall taste profile.

And Smokey Chipotle dazzles with a tinge of sweetness, fitting head-on with my aforementioned preferred styles of mustard.  Maybe the only deficiency is that it could have had a touch more heat.  Had it had that, This could have been mustard nirvana. Smokey Chipotle goes terrifically on just about everything. Great stuff!

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Steakhouse

Ingredients:
Distilled vinegar, water, #1 grade mustard seed, tomato paste, chipotle puree, sugar and salt. contains less than 2% of: turmeric, natural flavors, spices, sodium benzoate & potassium sorbate (as preservatives), paprika and pectin.

Summary:
El Diablo’s Steakhouse Mustard is the dark horse of the six. It shares a similar core flavor as the others, but there is something savory, sweet, smokey, and smooth to it’s multi-faceted edge. What exactly is it that certain something I was tasting? Well, it’s not a “steak sauce” type of flavor.  There is undoubtedly a smidgen of tomato flavor.  But there was also the presence of turmeric, mustard seed, paprika and even perhaps cardamom giving that distinctive bite. But all in all, there exists an overlying smoothness and creaminess that prevents this from being too spicy.

Your results may vary; I found this was great on smoked sausage and burgers but failed on a deli sandwich and was odd with soft pretzels. Do a little experimentation and you might take a liking to El Diablo’s Steakhouse Mustard.

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Texas Chili

Ingredients:
Distilled vinegar, water, #1 grade mustard seed, tomato paste, salt, spices and sugar. contains less than 2% of: garlic powder, turmeric, paprika, sodium benzoate & potassium sorbate (as preservatives) and pectin.

Summary:
Out of what I’ve reviewed so far, Texas Chili Mustard has by far the biggest punch in terms of both chile pepper kick and distinctive flavor. In the taste field, Texas Chili is very predictably full of tomatoes, cumin and chile pepper notes – and good ones at that, almost giving you a chili dog sensation. Heat-wise? Oh, yeah! There’s definite zing and residual burn on your tongue after downing a few smoked sausages that are covered with this condiment. And a little bit of El Diablo Texas Chili Mustard added to nacho queso makes a kick ass pretzel dip.  Mmmmm-MMMM!

With punch and outstanding flavor, this may be my third favorite out of the group.

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Jalapeno

Ingredients:
Distilled vinegar, water, jalapeno peppers, #1 grade mustard seed. contains less than 2% of: salt, spices, natural flavors, sodium benzoate & potassium sorbate (as preservatives), turmeric and pectin.

Summary:
El Diablo’s Jalapeno Hot & Spicy Mustard finally treads closely to the flavor territory that I mentioned above as being a bit too bitter and sharp – not quite all the way in that ring, but approaching somewhat close, therefore preventing me from falling in love with this stuff.

It’s brighter and tarter than all the previous El Diablo offerings, and lacking rich complexity and the touch of sweetness that made them good to great mustards. Thankfully, the awesome flavor of jalapeno peppers come to the rescue with this particular condiment. It works well in some settings as a complementary flavor where the main dish has sweet or smokey feel to it. Maybe if this Jalapeno Hot & Spicy Mustard would have had a little more sweetness of its own and a richer base, this might have rated higher with me.

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Habanero

Ingredients:
Distilled vinegar, water, #1 grade mustard seed, brown sugar, habanero chili puree and salt. contains less than 2% of: spices, sodium benzoate & potassium sorbate (as preservatives), turmeric and pectin.

Summary:
The Habanero Mustard is the sauce that Jalapeno could have been (read the Jalapeno’s summary above), as it has a much-needed burst of multi-faceted flavor harmonies and a bit of sweetness to the core mustard base. And the spiciness! Lovely throbs of heat brought on by a habanero chile taste where you could actually detect the fruity and almost apricot-like flavor of the pepper pods. For a truly spicy mustard, El Diablo Habanero is an all-purpose winner of a condiment.  From hot dogs to pulled pork sandwiches to shrimp to burgers, this one has the pungent appeal for chileheads and the awesome taste for mustard lovers. A BIG thumbs up from me!

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In Summary

An overall impressive brand. To purchase these El Diablo Hot and Spicy Mustards, you can find them over on El Diablo’s official website. They come in 9-oz. squeeze plastic bottles, and are for sale in 2-packs for $5.00 plus shipping.