From Sauce to Aspic – The 500-Year Journey of Galentyne → Galantine

From hot medieval sauce to elegant cold aspic — the shifting identity of galentyne/galantine.

What’s in a name? Few dishes illustrate the transformations of European cuisine as vividly as galentyne. In the 14th century, it meant a spiced, bread-thickened sauce for meats or fish. By the 19th century, galantine had become a boned, stuffed, aspic-set cold dish — a centerpiece of French haute cuisine. Here we trace that remarkable journey across 500 years, with original recipes and modern adaptations.

Medieval Origins (14th–15th c.)

Harleian MS. 279 (England, c.1430): Fyletes in Galentyne is one of the best known. Pork is roasted, cut up, and stewed with onions, pepper, ginger, bread, and vinegar, finished with blood or sanders for color.

“Take fayre porke of the fore quarter, and rost hit tyl hit be almost ynogh; … and colour hit with blode, or elles with sandres, and then lat hit boyle up wel, and serve it forth.”

See the full recipe in our updated Fyletes in Galentyne post.

Renaissance & Early Print (15th–16th c.)

As cookbooks moved into print, galentyne continued as a sauce in England. In France, however, the term broadened. It could still mean a sauce, but also came to describe elaborate entremets — refined dishes served after the roast.

Harleian MS. 4016 (England, 15th c.): Pike in Galentyne shows the sauce applied to fish, steeped bread in vinegar and wine, thickened, spiced, and poured over the fish. (English translation at Coquinaria).

17th Century – La Varenne’s Turning Point (1651)

« On les prépare de diverses façons : rôtis à la broche; désossés en blanquette; en galantine; roulés; en daube… »

“They are prepared in various ways: roasted on the spit; boned for blanquette; in galantine; rolled; in daube…”

Modern adaptation: This isn’t a recipe, but a recognized preparation method. “En galantine” here signals a boned bird, stuffed or rolled, and cooked gently in broth. The word has left the sauce category and now denotes a method of preparing poultry.

18th Century – Massialot Defines Galantine (1693 / 1702)

1702 English (Gutenberg, The Court and Country Cook):
“To make a Turkey in Galantine. Take a fat Turkey, bone it clean, then fill it with a farce of veal, pork, lard, and herbs. Sew it up, lard it well, then stew it gently in good broth, with seasonings of pepper, cloves, and a bundle of herbs. When it is tender, take it out, let it cool, and serve it either hot with its own liquor reduced, or cold as is customary for Galantine.”

French (1693, IA scan): Dindon en galantine — same method: boned, stuffed with forcemeat, simmered, served hot or cold. (See 1693 French edition.)

Modern adaptation: Bone a turkey, fill with forcemeat (veal, pork, lard, herbs), sew and poach in broth. Serve hot with reduced liquor, or cold sliced — the hallmark of 18th-century galantine service.

19th Century – Escoffier’s Cold Aspic Galantine (1903)

« Galantine de Volaille. – Désosser entièrement une volaille, l’aplatir; l’emplir d’une farce composée de viande de veau, de porc gras, de truffes et pistaches; la rouler dans une étamine, la pocher doucement dans un bon fond. Laisser refroidir, glacer à l’aspic, servir en tranches. »

“Galantine of Poultry – Bone a bird completely, flatten it; fill with a forcemeat of veal, fat pork, truffles, and pistachios; roll it in muslin, poach gently in good stock. Let it cool, glaze with aspic, and serve sliced.”

Modern adaptation: Boned poultry stuffed with forcemeat, rolled, poached, cooled, glazed with aspic, and sliced. This is the fully codified galantine of haute cuisine.

📜 The Evolution at a Glance

14th–15th c.: Galentyne = hot spiced bread-thickened sauce for meats and fish.
16th c.: Sauce continues, but also tied to refined entremets.
17th c.: La Varenne uses “en galantine” to mean boned/stuffed poultry.
18th c.: Massialot gives full recipes: boned, stuffed turkey, hot or cold.
19th c.: Escoffier codifies galantine as cold, aspic-set centerpiece.

🥩 Galantine vs. Ballotine vs. Terrine

Term	Definition	Key Features
Galantine	A whole bird or large cut of meat, boned, stuffed with forcemeat, rolled, poached, cooled, and glazed with aspic.	Served cold, sliced; centerpiece dish of haute cuisine.
Ballotine	A smaller portion (leg, breast, or small bird) boned, stuffed, and rolled.	Served hot or cold; individual or small format “mini galantine.”
Terrine	A forcemeat or ingredient mixture cooked in a loaf-shaped mold (“terrine dish”).	Closer to pâté; sliced, usually cold; not rolled, may or may not use aspic.

Recipe Appendix

Three concise, kitchen-ready recipes that follow the historical arc: medieval sauce → 18th-century stuffed bird → 19th-century cold galantine.

Medieval: Pork with Galentyne Sauce (c.1430, Harleian-style)

2 lb pork shoulder (forequarter), roasted to ~70% done; cut in slices
2 medium onions, thinly sliced • 2 tbsp lard/butter
2 cups beef/mutton broth • 1 tsp black pepper • 1 tsp ginger
2 slices stale bread • 1/2 cup wine/cider vinegar
Finish: EITHER 1/4 cup fresh animal blood (traditional; see note) or 1/2 cup ale; OR 1 tsp red sandalwood (sanders)

Fry onions in fat until golden; add broth, pepper, ginger; simmer 10–15 min.
Soak bread in vinegar; mash/strain; whisk into the pot to thicken.
Stir in blood (or ale) or sanders; simmer gently to glossy.
Slice pork and nap with the hot galentyne sauce.

18th Century: Turkey “in Galantine” (Massialot-inspired; hot or cold)

Massialot bones, stuffs, and gently stews the bird; serve hot with reduced liquor or cold in slices.

1 boneless turkey breast, butterflied (about 2 lb)
Forcemeat: 10 oz ground veal (or chicken), 6 oz ground pork, 3 oz diced fatback/bacon, 1 egg, 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs, 2 tbsp chopped parsley, 1 tsp thyme, 1/2 tsp pepper, pinch clove, 1 tsp salt
Poaching: 6 cups light stock, bouquet (parsley stems, bay, thyme), 4 cloves

Spread breast skin-side down; season. Mix forcemeat; spread in an even layer; roll and tie.
Simmer gently in stock with bouquet/cloves, 75–90 min, to 160–165°F internal.
Serve hot: reduce liquor to a light sauce; slice and nap. Or serve cold: chill overnight, slice neatly.

19th Century: Galantine of Poultry in Aspic (Escoffier-style, simplified)

1 whole chicken, deboned (or 2 boneless breasts + 2 deboned thighs with skin)
Forcemeat: 12 oz veal (or chicken), 8 oz pork, 4 oz pork fat, 1 egg + 1 yolk, 1/2 cup cream, 2 tbsp brandy (opt.), 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp white pepper, pinch nutmeg
Garnish: 2 oz pistachios, 2 oz diced cooked tongue/ham, 1 oz diced truffle (opt.)
Poaching stock (light consommé) • Clear aspic (set with gelatin) for glazing

Process forcemeat smooth; fold in garnishes. Lay chicken skin-side down; spread forcemeat; roll tight in cheesecloth; tie ends.
Poach at a bare simmer 75–90 min to 160–165°F internal; cool in liquor, then chill under light weight to set.
Unwrap, trim, glaze with barely-set aspic; chill firm; slice for service.

🩸 Note on Blood (Substitutes)

Fresh animal blood is hard to source in the U.S. Acceptable stand-ins for medieval galentyne include ale or stout (body), red wine (color/acid), or simply extra vinegar-soaked bread for thickness. Flavor won’t be identical, but the balance and appearance are period-faithful.

Sources

Harleian MS. 279 (c.1430), British Library digital facsimile.
Taillevent, Le Viandier (14th c.).
La Varenne, François Pierre de, Le Cuisinier François (1651, Gallica facsimile).
Massialot, François, Le Cuisinier Royal et Bourgeois (1693 French, Internet Archive scan).
Massialot, François, The Court and Country Cook (1702 English translation, Project Gutenberg).
Carême, Marie-Antoine. L’Art de la Cuisine Française, 19th c.
Escoffier, Auguste. Le Guide Culinaire. Paris, 1903.