Where's the Beef? Five Medieval Beef Soups

The walls are up! The tile is laid and waiting to be grouted. I am excited to see the kitchen coming back together again. I've gotten response with putting together these kinds of posts. Today's post features five different recipes for stewed beef, each unique, each delicious. I hope you try them and let me know how you liked them. Soon, very soon....I will be back to interpreting again.

Simply click the link to be taken to the page to find the recipe. Please leave me a message and let me know if you would like to see more posts like this.

Thank you!

To stew Fillets of Beefe (Madge Lorwin's Dining with William Shakespeare) Tender slices of beef, stewed in wine, lemon and herbs. I make this in the crockpot and serve it over rice. It is a welcoming dish to come home to after a hard day at work. Picture at right is part of the cooking process.  Despite constantly thinking "I need a picture of the final product" I never take one. 

vj. Beef y-Stywyd. - This recipe from Two fifteenth-century cookery-books : Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430), & Harl. MS. 4016 (ab. 1450), with extracts from Ashmole MS. 1439, Laud MS. 553, & Douce MS. 55 by Thomas Austin is very reminiscent of the same flavor profiles one would expect when eating Cincinnati style chili. It was a huge hit and the taste testers were very quick to remark on how "modern" this recipe tasted. It was also very quick and easy to put together another crock pot classic.

.viij. Venyson with Furmenty. - Two recipes combined to create a comforting and tasty dish. Venison (or beef) simmered in broth, wine, and vinegar seasoned with parsley, sage, pepper, mace and cloves.  Hearty and filling when served over rice or furmenty (a creamy porridge of cracked wheat scented with saffron), or even a big chunk of bread to soak up all the flavorful broth--it would be a crime not to! You must try this.

.xxiiij. Drawyn grwel. - An unctuous and savory soup made from ground beef, cooked in a broth, thickened with oatmeal and seasoned with parsley and sage. This recipe was amazing and has changed my (and the taste testers) opinions on what gruel should be. Despite rumors to the contrary, gruel is not a flavorless, thin watery soup of unknown origin. The oats add a subtle nutty flavor, the meat is tender and the water and broth thicken considerably once cooked. A worthy dish to be served to kings and peasants alike.

.xxxvij. Autre Vele en bokenade. - Veal (or beef) and thin slivers of onions stewed gently in an almond milk based broth, flavored with warm and exotic spices and sweet currants and thickened with rice flour. Yum!! This was a beautifully easy and quick recipe to throw together, and I suspect it could be made in a crockpot. It absolutely fit the bill of "comfort food".

Five Medieval Chicken Soups to Nourish the Soul

Since my kitchen is being remodeled and I am unable to cook I thought I might try something a little different. The plumbing and electric have been completed and the tile is laid, simply waiting to be grouted. Soon, very soon....I will be back to interpreting again.

Simply click the link to be taken to the page to find the recipe. Please leave me a message and let me know if you would like to see more posts like this.

Thank you!




Harliean MS 279 (about 1430) Smale Byrdys y-stwyde - Small Birds Stewed - chicken or other small fowl stewed gently in a flavorful broth made of wine, seasoned with onions, saffron, and medieval spices.  When this was tested the commentary ran from unintelligible mumbling around spoonful's of soup, to groans of pleasure and an excited exclamation of "You have GOT to get this recipe to my mom".

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) -.xv. Bowres - Braised Fowl - duck, goose, or another form of fowl is braised in a flavorful broth of ale, sage and salt and served as a soup. The taste testers squabbled over who would get to eat the rest of it. 

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - .lxxxx. Hennys in Gauncelye - Chicken in Garlic Cream Sauce - a classic dish that is still enjoyed in modern times. A beautifully golden cream sauce, seasoned liberally with garlic served with chicken. Fit for king!

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - Chykonys in bruette - Chicken in Broth  - What could be simpler then pieces of tender chicken in a flavorful broth seasoned with pepper, saffron and ginger? Simple and filling. 

Harleain MS 279 (ab. 1430) Henne in Bokenade - Stewed Chicken in Sauce -  This is a very comforting and filling dish, which could be made as saucy or as brothy as the cook desires. This dish is on my "must serve at a future feast" list. Tender bits of chicken served in its own broth, thickened with eggs and seasoned with sage, hyssop, parsley, mace, saffron and a bit of vinegar. It caused quite the uproar with the taste testers, who finally battled it out with a game of paper, rock and scissors to see who scored the leftovers.

Ten Easy Ancient Roman & Medieval Appetizers You Could Serve at any Get Together

Since my kitchen is being remodeled and I am unable to cook -- it is a remodel that starts with replacing plumbing and electric and will end with a new kitchen.  I thought I might try something a little different.  Simply click the link to be taken to the page to find the recipe.

Please leave me a message and let me know if you would like to see more of these.

Thank you!

Ancient Rome

Lucanicae--Grilled Sausage - This ancient Roman recipe creates a delicious sausage that you can serve alongside mustard, round it out with some olives, cheese and flatbread, fresh fruit and wine. You can't go wrong.

Epityrum--Olives--roughly chopped olives marinated in a blend of herbs, olive oil and vinegar--Leave whole for an entirely different presentation.  Delicious!

Moretum -- Herbed Cheese Spread - a delicious garlic and cheese based spread, serve as part of a cheese plate or on a vegetable tray. Can be made ahead of time and served as needed.

Aliter Sala Cattabia--Snow Cooled Alexandrian Loaf - Want an easy to eat chicken salad? Instead of using whole loaves of bread, use small rolls of bread stuffed with chicken, cucumber, cheese, capers, and onions and finished with a dressing made from pepper, mint, garlic, olive oil and coriander.  This dish could not be simpler to put together, eye catching and delicious.

Trimalchio's Pastry Eggs--hard boiled eggs, stuffed with the yolk, shrimp or chicken as you prefer, wrapped in pastry and baked.  A task made even simpler by purchasing your eggs already cooked and using store bought pastry.  Want something more elegant? Try quail eggs, stuffed with minced shrimp or chicken.

Late Medieval 

Torta D’agli-Garlic Tart - A rich and creamy cheese based tart flavored with garlic.  Make in mini-muffin tins to serve. 

Une Vinaigrette- A Vinager Dish--Sliced beef, lamb, or liver quickly grilled and served with a sauce of vinegar and broth, thickened with bread crumbs and seasoned with pepper, ginger, grains of paradise and saffron.  Take it one step further, and skewer the beef and onions before grilling and you have an easy to serve appetizer fit for a King.

To Stew Shrimps being taken out of their shells -- Shrimp, wine, lemon juice, capers, garlic, thyme and butter -- a dish that is as beautiful as it is elegant.

Savoury Tostyde-- a quick and easy to prepare cheese sauce, not unlike a fondue that can easily be served with similar ingredients, bread, cubes of meat, lightly steamed or raw vegetables. Affectionately dubbed "cheese crack" because once you taste it, you cannot stop going back for more. 

Compost--sweet, savory and mustardy pickled medieval vegetables, easily served alongside the Savoury Tostyde, or with dilled pickles, olives and capers as part of a relish tray.