plant, with the seed coats removed. The small (1 mm) seeds are hard and vary in color from dark brown to black. They are flavorful, although they have almost no aroma. The seeds are commonly used in Indian cuisine, for example in curry, where it is known as rai. The seeds are usually thrown into hot oil or ghee, after which they pop, releasing a characteristic nutty flavor. The seeds have a significant amount of fatty oil, mainly oleic acid. This oil is used often as cooking oil in India, where it is called "sarson ka tel". The young leaves, buds and flowers are edible. In Ethiopia, where the plant is cultivated as a vegetable in Gondar, Harar and Shewa, the shoots and leaves are consumed cooked and the seeds used as a spice. Its Amharic name is senafitch. Black mustard is thought to be the seed mentioned by Jesus in the Parable of the Mustard Seed. Since the 1950s, black mustard has become less popular as compared to brown mustard, because some cultivars of brown mustard have seeds that can be mechanically harvested in a more efficient manner. Folk medicine In the UK, the plant was used to make "hot mustard baths", which would aid people with colds. Ground seeds of the plant mixed with honey are widely used in eastern Europe as cough suppressant. In Eastern Canada, the use of to treat respiratory infections was popular before the advent of modern medicine. It consisted in mixing ground mustard seeds with flour and water, and creating a cataplasm with the paste. This poultice was put on the chest or the back and left until the person felt a stinging sensation. Mustard poultice could also be used to aid muscular pains. Similar plants Despite their similar common names, black mustard and white mustard (genus Sinapis) are not closely related. Black mustard belongs to the same genus as cabbage and turnips. B. nigra also resembles Hirschfeldia incana, or hoary mustard, (formerly Brassica geniculata), which is a perennial plant. See also Mustard plant Mustard seed Sinapis References External links Entry in Gernot Katzer's spice pages, with pictures and detailed information Entry in Illinois Wildflowers Mustards nigra Spices Medicinal plants of Asia Medicinal plants of Europe Flora of Europe Flora of North Africa Flora of Eritrea Flora of Ethiopia Flora of Afghanistan Flora of Armenia Flora of the Caucasus Flora of China Flora