Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - Cxxij. A rede morreye

In the realm of medieval cookery, there's a curious coincidence found within the Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery Books: Harleian MS. 279 (circa 1430) and Harl. MS. 4016 (circa 1450), featuring extracts from Ashmole MS. 1439, Laud MS. 553, and Douce MS. 55 by Thomas Austin. It's the duplication of a recipe, each time bearing a different name but offering similar instructions on preparing the dish. Fortunately, I find myself in possession of mulberries, which seem to flourish abundantly in my locale, and are often treated as anuisances in my area.

Murrey, is similar to Rapeye, seems to denote a type of sauce, characterized by its red or reddish hue and its thick consistency. For instance, the recipe from the Forme of Curye, circa 1390, presents an early rendition of this recipe: 

MORREE [1]. XXXVIII.

Take Almandes blaunched, waisshe hem. grynde hem. and temper hem up with rede wyne, and alye hem with flour of Rys. do þerto Pynes yfryed. and colour it with saundres. do þerto powdour fort and powdour douce

and salt, messe it forth and flour it [2] with aneys confyt whyte.

[1] Morree. Ms. Ed. 37. murrey. Ibid. II. 26. morrey; probably from the mulberries used therein. [2] flour it. Flourish it.

Similarly, a recipe from MS Royal 12 (1340) offers diverse ingredients to accomplish the sauce:

32. Moree. rice flour or amidon, whichever can be found; that the color of sandalwood will be had, grind well in a mortar; and then it must be tempered in almond milk and well strained. And then put powdered cinnamon and of galingale. If it is a fish day, put in pears or chestnuts or salmon, or luce or perch; if a meat day, put in veal or goat, if you would have a good and royal meat.

The Online Etymological Dictionary gives the following information on the derivation of the word:

c. 1300, "tree of the genus Morus;" mid-14c. in reference to a berry from the tree; an alteration of morberie (13c.) from or cognate with Middle High German mul-beri (alteration by dissimilation of Old High German mur-beri, Modern German Maulbeere); both from Latin morum "mulberry, blackberry" + Old English berie, Old High German beri "berry." As mentioned earlier, I am lucky to have a mulberry tree growing in my yard. Each year I wait for the fruit to ripen so that I can make mulberry jam, or eat it on shortcakes either by itself or mixed with other berries.

Both of these recipes refer to a dish that is colored with mullberries. As has been discussed previously, color played a major roles in this time period. The color "red" held major significance; life force, love, lust and anger being only a few.  It also held religious significance, being the color of Christ's blood and the fires of Hell. I wonder what the significance held for this dish, if any?

Original Recipe

.Cxxij. A rede Morreye.—Take Molberys, and wrynge a gode hepe of hem þorw a cloþe; nym Vele, hew it & grynd it smal, & caste þer-to; nym gode Spycery an [supplied by ed.] Sugre, & caste þer- [leaf 22 bk.] to; take Wastilbrede & grate it, & ȝolkys of Eyroun, & lye it vppe þer-with, & caste gode pouder of Spycery þer-an a-bouen; & þan serue it forth.

Interpreted Recipe

122. A Red Morreye - Take mulberries, and wring a good heap of them through a cloth; take veal, cut it and grind it small, and cast thereto; take good spices and sugar, and caste thereto; take Wastel Bread (bread made from flour) and grate it, and yolks of eggs, and lay it up there-with and caste good powder of spices there-on, above; and then serve it forth.

Original Recipe

.Cxviij. Murreye.—Take Molberys, & wryng hem þorwe a cloþe; nym Vele, hew it, sethe it, grynd it smal, & caste þer-to; nym gode Spycery, Sugre, & caste þer-to; take Wastylbrede y-gratyd, [leaf 22.] and ȝolkys of Eyroun, & lye it vppe þer-with, & caste gode pouder a-boue y-now, & þan serue forth.

Interpreted Recipe

218. Murreye - Take mulberries, and wring them through a cloth, take veal, cut it, cook it, grind it smal and cast there-to; take good spicery, sugar and caste there-to; take wastel bread grated, and yolks of eggs and lay it up there-with, and cast good powder above enough now and then serve forth.


Ingredients 
To Serve 8

2 pounds cooked veal, pork or chicken, either sliced, or cut into bite sized pieces

2 cups mulberries

1 tsp. mixed spices (powder forte)

~ 1/4 to 1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1 egg yolk
*Opt*  1 tsp. lemon juice, vinegar, or wine

Instructions

1. We are instructed to "take mulberries and wring them through a cloth", to create mulberry juice.  To do this, add mulberries, spices, sugar, lemon juice (wine, vinegar) , and water (if needed) to a blender, and blend until smooth.

2. Strain your juice using a cloth lined sieve, to remove solids,  into a pan. 
3. Add bread and egg  yolk, and simmer, stirring constantly, until the bread has dissolved in the sauce. 
4. Add meat, and continue to cook until the mixture has reached your desired consistency. 

Thoughts

This recipe is found in the pottage section of the Harl. MS 279, meaning it is a dish that is cooked in a pot.  The instructions as written above, advise us to mix the meat with the sauce, and to cook it. We are left to our imagination to determine if this is a saucier dish that could serve as a "soup/stew" or if it could be served as a sauce along side, sliced meat, which would be a more modern interpretation.  Or a meat cooked in sauce, similar to a meaty pasta sauce, or a good braised meat. 

For the presentation, I chose to serve this dish as a braised dish, using slices of pork braised in the mulberry sauce over sops of bread (to catch all of the sauce!), and a side of boiled & buttered vegetables. This would be a delicious appetizer or a perfect first course dish.  I hope you enjoy. 

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - Cix.Gelye de chare &Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - Cx. Gelye de Fysshe

These two particular recipes 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 could be mistaken for modern dishes known as "aspics".  An aspic is gelatine made from meat stock that is molded and include pieces of meat, fish or eggs. All aspics are gelatine, but not all gelatines are aspics.  The primary difference being the sweetness of the dish; aspics are savory, and gelatines are sweet, with medieval and rennaissance aspics falling somewhere in the middle of the two making them the precursor's to the fancy modern day dishes we know today. 

The oldest evidence of the making of gelatine can be found in the Nahal Hemar Cave near Mt. Sedom in Israel.  During the excavation it was discovered that numerous cave paintings,  baskets and utinsels contained collagen that was derived from animal skins. It was used as a glue to bind pigments found in cave paintings and to provide a waterproof barrier for baskets, cloth and other containers. It is theorized that the glue was obtained through boiling of animal hides. 

Hide glue and gelatin we eat are "the same thing".  If you are interested in trying to make a similar glue you can find instructions on the Practical Primitive website here (I would not advise eating it).  If you would like to learn more about the scientific/technical aspects of hide glue click here. 

Important Disclaimer: Knox Gelatine, which is what I used to prepare the gelye de chare in the past is -not- derived from the animal hide but is made from bones and therefore is not vegetarian.  

The Roman historian Pliny writes about "fish-glue", a process that produced a thin, honey like substance that when mixed with other items could be used to remove wrinkles and plump the skin.  The instructions he gives bear a closer resemblence to the instructions to make Gelye of Fleysshe. 

Fish-glue effaces wrinkles and plumps out the skin; being boiled for the purpose in water some four hours, and then pounded and kneaded up till it attains a thin consistency, like that of honey.  -- The Natural History of Pliny, Volume 6 of 6, by Pliny the Elder

The earliest recipes I was able to locate for making gelye dishes come from the 1300's.  The first being for fish from Enseignements qui enseingnent a apareillier toutes manieres de viandes (1300's).

If you want to make fish jelly, break the back of the fish and cut it into pieces, that is to say: carp and tench, bream and turbot, and put to cook in good, strong wine; Then take cinnamon, ginger, long pepper, galingale, lavender and a little saffron; Then grind and put all together; And when you strain it of the fire, then in take out the fish in a bowl and pour thereon; and if you see that it is too thick, then sieve it and let it cool until the morning, and by then take it likewise like jelly.

The second from 1381 for a meat jelly from MS Douce 257

For to make mete gelee þat it be wel chariaunt, tak wyte wyn & a perty of water & safroun & gode spicis & flesch of piggys or of hennys, or fresch fisch, & boyle þam togedere; & after, wan yt ys boylyd & cold, | dres yt in dischis & serue yt forþe. 

.Cix. Gelye de chare.—Take caluys fete, & skalde hem in fayre water, an make hem alle þe whyte. Also take howhys of [leaf 20.] Vele, & ley hem on water to soke out þe blode; þen take hem vppe, an lay hem on a fayre lynen cloþe, & lat þe water rennyn out of hem [supplied by ed.] ; þan Skore*. [Scour. ] a potte, & putte þe Fete & þe Howhys þer-on; þan take Whyte Wyne þat wolle hold coloure, & cast þer-to a porcyon, an non oþer lycoure, þat þe Fleysshe be ouer-wewyd*. [See other Cookery, No. 174, wese. ] withalle, & sette it on þe fyre, & boyle it, & Skeme it clene; an whan it is tendyr & boylid y-now, take vppe þe Fleyshe in-to a fayre bolle, & saue þe lycoure wyl; & loke þat þow haue fayre sydys of Pyggys, & fayre smal Chykenys wyl & clene skladdyd & drawe, & lat þe leggys an þe fete on, an waysshe hem in fayre water, & caste hem in þe fyrste brothe, an sethe it a-ȝen ouer þe fyre, & skeme it clene; lat a man euermore kepe it, an blow of þe grauy. An in cas þe lycoure wast*. [Waste. ] a-way, caste more of þe same wyne þer-to, & put þin honde þer-on; & ȝif þin hond waxe clammy, it is a syne of godenesse, an let not þe Fleyshe be moche sothe,*. [boiled. ] þat it may bere kyttyng; þan take it vppe, & ley it on a fayre cloþe, & sette owt þe lycoure fro þe fyre, & put a few colys vnder-nethe þe vesselle þat þe lycoure is yn; þan take pouder of Pepir, a gode quantyte, & Safron, þat it haue a fayre Laumbere coloure, & a gode quantyte of Vynegre, & loke þat it be sauery of [supplied by ed.] Salt & of Vynegre, fayre of coloure of Safroun, & putte it on fayre lynen cloþe, & sette it vndernethe a fayre pewter dysshe, & lat it renne þorw þe cloþe so ofte tylle it renne clere: kytte fayre Rybbys of þe syde of þe Pygge, & lay ham on a dysshe, an pulle of þe lemys of þe Chykenys, eche fro oþer, & do a-way þe Skynne, & ley sum in a dysshe fayre y-chowchyd,*. [Y-couched; laid. ] & pore þin*. [Thine. ] gelye þer-on, & lay Almaundys þer-on, an Clowys, & paryd Gyngere, & serue forth.

109. Gely of Flesh - Take calves feet, and scald them in fair water, and make them all the white.  Also take hooves of veal, and lay them on water to soak out the blood; then take them up and lay them on a fair linen cloth, and let the water running out of them; then scour a pot and put the feet and hooves there-on; then take white wine that would hold color, and caste there-to a portion and none other liquor, that the flesh be over-washed withal, and set it on the fire and boil it and skim it clean; and when it is tender and boiled enough, take up the flesh into a fair bowl, and save the liquor well; and look that you have fair sides of pigs, and fair small chickens well and clean scalded and draw, and let the legs and the feet on, and wash them in fair water, and caste them in the first broth, and boil it again over the fire, and skim it clean; let a man evermore keep it, and blow off the gravy. And in case the liquor waist away, caste more of the same wine thereto, and put your hand there-on and if your hand wax clammy, it is a sign of goodness, and let no the flesh be much boiled that it may bear cutting; then take it up and lay it on a fair cloth and set out the liquor from the fire, and put a few cloths underneath the vessel that the liquor is in; then take good powder of pepper, a good quantity of saffron, that it have a fair amber color, and a good quantity of vinegar, and look that it be savory of salt and of vinegar, fair of color of saffron, & put it on fair linen cloth, & set it underneath a fair pewter dish, and let it run through the cloth so oft till it run clear: cut fair ribs of the side of the pig, and lay them on a dish, and pull of the limbs (?) of the chickens, each from the other, and do away the skin, and lay some in a dish fair y-couched (laid) and pour your gely thereon, and lay almonds, thereon and cloves and paired ginger, and serve forth.

.Cx. Gelye de Fysshe.—Take newe Pykys, an draw hem, and smyte hem to pecys, & sethe in þe same lycoure þat þou doste Gelye of Fleysshe; an whan þey ben y-now, take Perchys and Tenchys, & seþe; & Elys, an kutte hem in fayre pecys, and waysshe hem, & putte hem in þe same lycoure, & loke þine lycoure be styf y-now; & ȝif it wolle notte cacche,*. [stick; see other Cookery, No. 174. ] take Soundys of watteryd Stokkefysshe, or ellys Skynnys, or Plays, an caste þer-to, & sethe ouer þe fyre, & skeme it wyl; & when it ys y-now, let nowt þe Fysshe breke; þenne take þe lycoure fro þe fyre, & do as þou dedyst be*. [By, with. ] þat oþer Gelye, saue, pylle þe Fysshe, & ley þer-off in dysshis, þat is, perche & suche; and Flowre hem, & serue forthe.

110. Gely of Fish --Take new pike, and draw them, and smite them into pieces, and boil in the same liquor that you do gely of flesh; and when they been enough, take perch and tench, and cook, and eels, and cut them in fair pieces and wash them, and put them in the same liquor, and look your liquor be stiff enough, and if it would not catch (stick?), take sounds (swim bladder) of watery stockfish, or eel skins or plaice, and caste thereto, and cook, and cook over the fire and skim it well; and when it is enough, let not the flesh break; then take the liquor from the fire, and do as you did with the other gely, save pile the fish, and lay there-of in dishes that is, perch and such; and flower them and serve forth.

Harleain MS 279 (ab. 1430) - xlviij. Tayloures & Cxiiij. Tayleȝ - Rice Porridge with Currants & Dates or Figs, Dates and Raisins + Bonus Recipes for Poudre Douce (Sweet Powder)

Tayleȝ with Spiced Apples and Walnuts

I was very eager to try out 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" for Tayloures, which is another pottage based on the almond milk and rice flour base.  Previously published interpretations which contain this base include; Cxxxvj. A potage of Roysons (Rice Porridge with Apples and Raisins), .Ixxxv. Gaylede (Rice Porridge with Figs & Honey), .Cxxv. Vyolette - Violet. and .lxviij. Bruet of Almaynne in lente (Rice Porridge with Dates). 

The taste testers and I had an interesting conversation about where in a feast you would find dishes like these served.  The consensus is that for the modern day pallet you serve them at breakfast--barring that, they should most likely be served either as a sweet side dish as part of a course, or at the end of the meal for a warm pudding. I believe in period these dishes would have been served in first course for dietetic reasons.  

I have combined two similar sets of instructions into this post which was first published in 2017.  The second dish, Tayley (Taylez) differs from the first only in the fruits used, and the addition of vinegar and honey added to the dish.  I chose to make the sauce seperately, adding the dates and the raisins to it.  You will note that the sauce appears very dark.  I was gifted autumn honey from a friend, and this particular honey is very dark and flavorful. 

These two dishes do not disappoint. They differ differs from the other pottages with the use of the wine, the fruits used and the spicing. Some things to note; the interchange of bread with rice as a thickener in the first recipe, and the usage of honey versus sugar in the second.  This led to a discussion on the preogative of the cook; Is it ok to follow the example of these recipes and add additional spices or exchange out the thickeners used when reconstructing recipes in period?  We concluded that what we were using today was a set of instructions most likely written by someone watching the cook prepare the food, and listening to what the cook said, but who may have only seen it prepared the one time.  Therefore, it is likely that just as modern day cooks will substitute one item for another, the medieval cook most likely did the same. In a situation where using a wheat based thickener is not idea, the use of eggs or rice would be appropriate.  Likewise for the use of seasoning or other items.  We also noted that in this particular manuscript several sets of instructions (like these two) may differ by one or two items, for example the addition of wine, the protein used, or  in this case the fruit and spicing differ. 

The last bit of discussion we had, while finishing off our "brunch" was the feasibility of creating dishes like this for camping events, specifically for a camp breakfast. It was noted that with the exception of almond milk, all of the ingredients are dried and easily portable.  It would be quite feasible to make almond milk on site, eliminating the need to keep a dairy product that would easily spoil around.  Further, it was noted that the cereal itself continued to thicken as it cooled.  Had there been *any* left over, I would have liked to have know if it would be possible to cool it, slice it and fry it up similar to mush.  With the ingredients used, refridgeration would not be a requirement right away.  

What would you do with the almond meal once the milk was made? With a can of pie filling, or fresh fruit of your choice, you could make a quick crumbly topping for a camp pie.  Simply mix 1/4 cup of the (used) almond flour with 1 cup dry oats, a teaspoon or more of your spices, up to a1/4 cup honey and add the juice of half an orange. Yum! Breakfast and desert done with creative use of portable items that do not require a cooler ;-)

xlviij. Tayloures. — Take a gode mylke of Almaundys y-draw with Wyne an Water, an caste hym in-to a potte, and caste gret Roysouns of corauns, Also mencyd Datys, Clowes, Maces, Pouder Pepir, Canel, Safroun, & a gode dele Salt, & let boyle a whyle; þan take it and ly*. [Lye; allay.] it wyth Flowre of Rys, or ellys with Brede y-gratyd, & caste þer-to Sugre, & serue forth lyke Mortrewys, & caste pouder of Gyngere a-boue y-now.

48. Taylours - Take good milk of almonds drawn with wine and water, and caste them in a pot, and caste great raisins of corauns (currents). Also minced dates, cloves, maces, powder pepper, cinnamon, saffron and a good deal of salt, and let boil awhile; Than take it and lie it with flour of rice, or else with bread grated and caste there-to sugar, and serve forth like mortrews, and cast powder of ginger above enough.

Interpreted Recipe

3/4 cup almond milk
1/4 cup wine (I used red wine)
1 tbsp currants (or raisins)
2 dates chopped as small as currants (or raisins)
2 cloves
1/8 tsp. each mace, pepper, cinnamon (or to taste)
pinch of saffron
salt to taste
2-3 tbsp. rice flour or bread crumbs
1 tbsp or to taste sugar (or to taste)
Pinch of ginger

I used commercially prepared almond milk and added white wine to it because I wanted to keep the pottage as white as possible.  I much prefer the taste of homemade almond milk to the commercially prepared almond, and a easy recipe using almond flour can be found here: Quick Homemade Almond Milk. I heated the almond milk with the currants and the raisins and added the spices, a pinch of saffron and sugar to it.  Once it had obtained the color I wanted, I added the rice flour and stirred till it was thick.  Before serving I sprinkled the dish with a pinch of ginger and a pinch of currants.

.Cxiiij. Tayleȝ.—Take a chargeaunt Mylke of Almaundys, an draw with wyne caste in to þe potte [deleted in MS]; take Fygys & Roysonys a gode porcyon, to make it chargeaunt, waysshe hem clene, & caste hem on a morter, grynd hem as small as þou myȝt, temper hem vppe with þin*. [Thine. ] Mylke, draw hem þorw a straynoure, also chargeauntly as þou myȝth; caste it in a clene potte, do it to þe fyre; take Datys y-taylid a-long, & do þer-to; take Flowre of Rys, & draw it þorw a straynoure, and caste þer-to, & lat it boyle tylle it be chargeaunt; sette it on þe fyre; take pouder Gyngere & Canelle, Galyngale; temper with Vynegre, & caste þer-to Sugre, or hony; caste þer-to, sesyn it vppe with Salt, & serue forth.

114. Tayles - Take thick milk of almonds, and draw with wine, caste in to the pot; take figs & raisins a good portion, to make it thick, wash them clean and caste them on a morter, grind them as small as you might, temper them up with your milk, draw them through a strainer, also thick as you might; cast it in a clean pot, do it to the fire; take dates, sliced long, and do there-to; take flour of rice, and draw it through a strainer, and caste there-to, and let it boil till it be thick; set it on the fire; take powder ginger and cinnamon, galingale; temper with vinegar, and caste there-to sugar or honey; cast there-to, season it up with salt, and serve forth. 

Interpreted Recipe

3/4 cup almond milk
1/4 cup wine 
2 figs

1 tbsp raisins
2 dates sliced long ways

2-3 tbsp. rice flour

1/2 to 1 tsp. powder douce 
1 tbsp. vinegar (I used Apple Cider)

2 tbsp. honey
salt to taste

Prepare as above.  You can serve the spiced syrup separate, or add it to the cereal mixture.  In the picture I made the wine and honey mixtures a syrup and poured over the top.  

Both of these dishes had very balanced flavors, while similar in ingredients and preperation each was different from the other.  

Similar Recipes

Le Viandier de Taillevent (France, ca. 1380 - James Prescott, trans.)

Lenten slices. Take peeled almonds, crush very well in a mortar, steep in water boiled and cooled to lukewarm, strain through cheesecloth, and boil your almondmilk on a few coals for an instant or two. Take some cooked hot water pastries a day or two old and cut them into bits as small as large dice. Take figs, dates and Digne raisins, and slice the figs and dates like the hot water pastries. Throw everything into it, leave it to thicken like Frumenty, and boil some sugar with it. To give it colour, have some saffron for colouring it like Frumenty. It should be gently salted.

Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany (England, 1460)

Tayle. Take a lytyll milke of almonds drawyn up with wyn & do hit in a pott do ther to figes reysens & datys cut and sygure & good pondys boyle hit up colour hit with safron & messe hit forth.

Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany (Beinecke MS 163) (England, 1460)

Tayle. Take a lytyll milke of almonds drawyn up with wyn & do hit in a pott do ther to figes reysens & datys cut and sygure & good pondys boyle hit up colour hit with safron & messe hit forth.

Bonus Recipe (s) 

DUKE'S POWDER - POLVORA DE DUQUE - Libre del Coch, 1529 

Half an ounce of cinnamon, one eighth of cloves, and for the lords cast in nothing but cinnamon, and a pound of sugar; if you wish to make it sharp in flavor and [good] for afflictions of the stomach, cast in a little ginger.

And the weights of the spices in the apothecary shops are in this manner: one pound is twelve ounces, one ounce, eight drachms; one drachm, three scruples; another way that you can more clearly understand this: a drachm weighs three dineros, a scruple is the weight of one dinero, and a scruple is twenty grains of wheat.

ANOTHER POWDER OF THE DUKE -  DE ALTRA POLVORA DE DUCH 

The Libre del Coch has a second recipe for this spice mix, De altra polvora de duch, which contains 2 oz. ginger, 1/2 drachm galingale, 1 oz. cinnamon, 1 oz. long pepper, 1 oz. grains of paradise, 1 oz. nutmeg, 1/4 oz. fine sugar. 

The Libre de Sent Sovi gives yet another recipe: 1 pound sugar; 1/2 oz. cinnamon; 3/4 oz. ginger; 1/4 oz. total of cloves, nutmeg, galingale, and cardamon.

Duke's Powder

Cinnamon half an ounce --1 tbsp.
Cloves half a quarter (1/8th of an ounce) --3/4 tsp.
Sugar a pound -- (based on the 12 ounce pound) 1 1/2 cups
Ginger - a little --1 tbsp.

This mixture of spices, while not completely white, yields a very light tan powder. This is the mixture that I have used in my interpretation for Bolas and is pictured as the powder filling the dates.

Note: A dry ounce is equal to two tablespoons, or 1/8th of a cup.

Previously published: January 02, 2017

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) -.Cxliiij. Schyconys with þe bruesse - Chicken with the Broth Bonus Recipe: Strong Spice Powder

Schyconys with þe bruesse, Rys & Lange Wortes de pesoun

"I want no peasant in my kingdom to be so poor that he cannot have a poule au pot on Sundays." 

King Henry IV

Oftentimes when you are attempting to interpret older manuscripts you find yourself  going down a rabbit hole attempting to find the meaning of a word.  Bruesse is one such word. After extensive searching I was able to locate the many different ways this word has been spelled in the various manuscripts.  

Brewis, broys, brouwys, browis, brewes, brus, brewish, brewys, brues, brewes, bruesse, brows, breawis, brewis-from the ME Browes, browys, brewes and Old French brouets, meaning a pottage (soup) made with the broth of meat.  Formally defined as broth, liquor in which beef and vegetables have been boiled;sometimes also thickened with bread or meal.  The oldest usage of a form of this word can be traced back to the 13th century. (Murray)

My first thought when I ran across this set of instructions in the 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. 55Thomas Austin, was that it bore a very strong resemblence to a classic dish "Poule Au Pot" only lacking in the vegetables that you would normally see in that dish.  Additionally, the form of the receipt appeared to contain instructions for two separate dishes. 

The first dish was made with "a gode gobet of freysshe beef" and "a dosyn chykonys", the second "stuffe þin chekons" with "hard Eyroun, & take þe ȝolkys & choppe hem smal, & choppe þer-to Clowys, Maces, Hole Pepir, & Stuffe þin chekonys with-al; Also put hole gobettys & marye with ynne" and "Moutoun" if you do not have beef. 

BUT--I was wrong.  There is a third recipe contained in this receipt. "Also þen dresse hem as a pertryche, & fayre coloure hem, & ley vppe-on þis browes, & serue in with Bakoun." Fortunately, I had previously interpreted the recipe for "Petrich Stewyde" which is remarkably similar to this one. The difference being the addition of wine to a basic broth made of beef.  To dress the chicken, in the third interpretation, you would stuff the bird with marrow, clove, mace and pepper. It would then be served with the basic broth made from beef and  marrow, and served with bacon (Bakoun, Bacoun, n. bacon, VIII a 279, 304. [OFr. bacun.]).  

.xviij. Pertrich stewyde.—Take fayre mary,*. [Marrow. No. 28, in Douce MS., has myȝty brothe. ] brothe of Beef or of Motoun, an whan it is wyl sothyn, take þe brothe owt of þe potte, an strayne it thorw a straynour, an put it on an erþen potte; þan take a gode quantyte of wyne, as þow it were half, an put þer-to; þan take þe pertryche, an stuffe hym wyth hole pepir, an merw,*. [Marrow. ] an than sewe þe ventys of þe pertriche, an take clowys an maces, & hole pepir, an caste it in-to þe potte, an let it boyle to-gederys; an whan þe pertryche is boylid y-now, take þe potte of þe fyre, an whan thou schalt serue hym forth, caste in-to þe potte powder gyngere, salt, safron, an serue forth.

When it comes to partridges we are given this instruction on how to cook them: 

Pecokkes and Parteriches schalle be parboyled, and larded, and rosted and eten with pouder of gynger. (Warner) 

For more information on medieval bacon, I highly recommend Tomas de Courcy's very well researched and interpreted article "Medieval Bacon".  I have used his methods to make my own, and can attest it is delicious!

The instructions in the manuscript are written below:

.Cxliiij. Schyconys with þe bruesse.—Take halfe a dosyn Chykonys, & putte hem in-to a potte; þen putte þer-to a gode gobet of freysshe Beef, & lat hem boyle wyl; putte þer-to Percely, Sawge leuys, Sauerey, noȝt to smal hakkyd; putte þer-to Safroun y-now; þen kytte þin Brewes, & skalde hem with þe same broþe; Salt it wyl; & but þou haue Beef, take Motoun, but fyrste Stuffe þin chekons in þis wyse: take & seþe hard Eyroun, & take þe ȝolkys & choppe hem smal, & choppe þer-to Clowys, Maces, Hole Pepir, & Stuffe þin chekonys with-al; Also put hole gobettys & marye with ynne; Also þen dresse hem as a pertryche, & fayre coloure hem, & ley vppe-on þis browes, & serue in with Bakoun.

My interpretation of this receipt are below: 

Cxliiij - Schyconys with the bruesse. Take halfe a dosyn Chykonys, and putte hem in-to a potte; then putte ther-to a gode gobet of freysshe Beef, and lat hem boyle wyl; putte ther-to Percely, Sawge leuys, Sauerey, no3t to smal hakkyd; putte ther-to Safroun y-now; then kytte thin Brewes, and skalde hem with the same brothe; Salt it wyl; and but thou haue Beef, take Motoun, but fyrste Stuffe thin chekons in this wyse: take and sethe hard Eyroun, and take the 3olkys and choppe hem smal, and choppe ther-to Clowys, Maces, Hole Pepir, and Stuffe thin chekonys with-al; Also put hole gobettys and marye with ynne; Also then dresse hem as a pertryche, and fayre coloure hem, and ley vppe-on this browes, and serue in with Bakoun.

143 -  Chicken with the broth.  Take half a dozen chickens, and put them into a pot; then put there-to a good piece of fresh beef, and let them boil well; put there-to parsley, sage leaves, savory, not to small cut; put there-to saffron enough; then cut your broth (I wonder if this is supposed to be chickens and beef?), and scald them with the same broth; salt it well; and if you do not have beef, take mutton, but first stuff your chickens in this way: take and cook hard eggs, and take the yolks, and chop them small, and chop there-to cloves, mace, whole pepper, and stuff your chicken with-al; also put hole pieces and marrow within. Also, then dress them as a partridge, and fair color them, and lay upon this broth, and serve it with bacon. 

Interpreted Recipes                                               Serves 6-8 

Version 1:  Chicken cooked in Savory Beef Broth

1 chicken (4-5 pound) cut into parts, skin on, bone in

1 -2 beef marrow bone(s), split 

1 - 2 pound beef chuck

1 tsp each parsley, sage, savory (or one bouquet garni of fresh herbs)

Pinch Saffron

1 tsp salt

2-3 quarts beef broth

Version 2:

1- 2 pounds lamb for stew 

1 chicken (4-5 pound) skin on, bone in

2-3 hardboiled eggs, yolks removed and finely chopped

1-2 tsp. "strong spice" blend

1/2 - 1 tsp. ginger

1 -2 beef marrow bone(s), split (opt. salt pork or bacon)

2-3 quarts beef broth

Version 3: 

1 chicken (4-5 pound), cut into parts, skin on, bone in

6 ounces bacon or salt pork

1-2 tsp. Strong Spices

1/2 to 1 tsp. ginger

Pinch of saffron (opt)

2-3 quarts beef broth

Heat your broth in your pot.  

Version 1: Add chicken, beef and spices and cook till meat is tender.  

Version 2: Finely chop egg yolks and mix with strong spices. Add marrow (in lieu of marrow you could use salt pork or bacon which will change the flavor but give the necessary fat component) and stuff this mixture into the chicken.  Alternatively, you could put the yolk back into the egg white, and push the egg whites together to resemble a whole egg, and place the egg and marrow into the cavity of the chicken along with remaining dressing.  

Add whole chicken to a pot along with the lamb and cook until the meat is tender. 

Version 3: Add chicken pieces and bacon to a pot along with the spices and cook until the meat is tender. 

Note: I made the third version of this dish using a cornish game hen which I had cut in half instead of a chicken. The broth was seasoned with the strong spices and the salted pork. It is pictured with Rys (rice) and Lange Wortes de pesoun (braised greens with peas).  The sweetness of the Rys (Rice) was a perfect counterpoint to the broth.  I ladeled off some of the excess broth to the final cook on the peas.  Also pictured is Robert May's French Bread. 

To Serve: This is a very brothy dish and should be served in a first course  as a pottage or "meat cooked in broth".  I personally would cook this dish ahead of time, allow to cool overnight, remove excessive fat, and pick out the bones leaving the meat in chunks. Reheating the broth, I would pour the broth over sops of bread and arrange the meat in chunks on top. Serve with boiled turnips, cabbage, carrots, etc. to round out the meal.  

Alternatively, you could brown the meat and simmer it in the broth until it is cooked through, strain the broth and thicken it with a bit of bread (to appease modern palates) and serve the thickened broth on the side as a "dish with sauce" in the second course. 

Or, you could take a modern spin, and strain the broth, serving it as the pottage, with the boiled meats (picked clean) on the side along with a selection of boiled vegetables. 

Bonus Recipe 

Strong Spice Blend (Powder Forte) - The recipe I use has it's basis in Robert May's "The accomplisht cook or, The art & mystery of cookery (1684) " Bolonia Sausages recipe.  

....then add to it three ounces of whole pepper, two ounces of pepper more
grosly cracked or beaten, whole cloves an ounce, nutmegs an ounce
finely beaten, salt, spanish, or peter-salt, an ounce of
coriander-seed finely beaten, or carraway-seed, cinamon an ounce
fine beaten...

*Note: A dry ounce is approximately two tablespoons.  

6 tablespoons whole pepper

4 tablespoons cracked pepper

2 tbsp. whole cloves, nutmegs, coriander or caraway and cinnamon

Salt to taste

1/4th Recipe - A little more manageable

1 1/2 tbsp. whole black peppercorn

1 tbsp. cracked pepper

1 1/2  tsp. each clove, nutmeg, coriander (or fennel) and cinnamon
Salt to taste

Combine all spices together in a spice grinder and grind till fine.  If you do not have a spice grinder a morter and pestle will do and barring that, the trusty rolling pin and a plastic bag work (don't ask).  Store and use as needed

Sources Used

Medieval Cookery - Medieval Cookbook Search. (2020). Retrieved 31 October 2020, from http://www.medievalcookery.com/search/display.html?ancie:68:PRTRJ

Murray, J. A. H., Bradley, H., Craigie, W. A., Onions, C. T. (1888). A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles: Founded Mainly on the Materials Collected by the Philological Society. United Kingdom: Clarendon Press.

Warner, R. (1791). Antiquitates Culinariæ: Or, Curious Tracts Relating to the Culinary Affairs of the Old English, with a Preliminary Discourse, Notes, and Illustrations. United Kingdom: R. Blamire.

Baronial 12th Night - Guissell- Bread Dumplings Harl. MS 4016, 1450

Spatchcocked roast chicken served with "farce" balls and giussel along with pickled blueberries (pickled barberries)

Harleian MS. 4016, ab. 1450 A.D. Guisseƚƚ. [supplied by ed.] *. [Taken from Douce MS. ] [folio 15.] Take faire capon̄ brotℏ, or of beef, And sette hit ouer the fire, and caste þerto myced sauge, parcelly and saffron̄, And lete boile; And streyn̄ the white and þe yolke of egges thorgℏ a streynour, and caste there-to faire grated brede, and medle hit togidre with thi honde, And caste the stuff to the brotℏ into þe pan̄; And stirre it faire and softe til hit come togidre, and crudded; And þen̄ serue it forth hote.

Guissell. (Note: Taken from Douce MS.) Take faire capon broth or of beef, and set it over the fire and cast thereto minced sage, parsley and saffron, and let it boil; and strain the white and the yolk of eggs through a strainer, and cast thereto grated bread and meddle it all together with your hand, and caste the stuff to the broth into the pan; and stir it fare and soft till it come together, and curded; and then serve it forth hot.

Guissell- bread dumplings Harl. MS 4016, 1450

2 cups bread crumbs (1/2 cup sage and onion stuffing mix and 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 eggs
1 small onion minced and parboiled
4 cups broth
1 tsp. sage
1 tbsp. parsley
Pinch of saffron

Served as side dish

Put your breadcrumbs, salt and pepper, (which was added for modern taste) into a bowl, create a well and add in your eggs one at a time until it starts to form lumps. Add your onions, and then enough water to form a smooth stiff "dough". If serving your dumplings dry (not in a flavored broth) add sage, parsley and omit the saffron.

Shape your dough into balls (I used a tablespoon) and drop them into boiling broth and remove with a slotted spoon when they begin to float. Serve.

Served as pottage

If you are not serving the dumplings dry, but are serving them in a flavorful broth, heat the broth, sage, parsley and saffron till it comes to a boil and then lower the heat to simmer. Shape your dough into balls, or add the dough in small batches until the dumplings float. Serve with broth.

Baronial 12th Night - Pickle for the Mallard - Onion Relish Harl. MS 279, 1430

Capon Farced, Let Lorey and Pickle for the Mallard

PikkyH ipotir le Mallard. ^ Take oynons, and hewe hem smaH, and fry hem in fressh grace, and caste hem into a potte, And fressh broth of beef, Wyne, & powder of poper, canel, and dropping of the mallard/ And lete hem boile togidur awhile ; And take hit fro ]>e ijre, and caste thereto mustard a litul, And ponder of ginger. And lete hit boile no more, and salt hit, And seme it forthe with j^e Mallard.

36. Pickle for the Mallard. Take onions, and hew them small, and fry them in fresh grease, and cast them into a pot, and fresh broth of beef, wine & powder of pepper, cinnamon, and drippings of the mallard/ And let them boil together awhile; And take it from the fire, and cast thereto mustard a little, and powder of ginger, and let it boil no more, and salt it and serve it forth with the Mallard.

Pickle for the Mallard – Onion Relish Harl. MS 279, 1430

2 medium onions sliced
1 tbsp. oil or lard
1 cup beef broth (you should be able to sub chicken or 50/50 beef/ chicken mix)
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. melted duck fat (I used chicken fat that I had saved after skimming off fat from chicken stock)
1/2 tsp. dry mustard (I used a tsp. of the lombard mustard)
1/2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. salt

In large skillet over medium heat, fry the onions in oil until they are transparent, add the broth, wine, pepper, cinnamon, duck fat, and let the mixture boil until the flavors are mixed, about 10 minutes. Add mustard, ginger, and salt. Stir. Reduce heat. Serve hot with duck (capon, chicken, or goose).

Baronial 12th Night - Garbage - stewed chicken offal (hearts, gizzards, livers, feet, neck) Harl. MS 279, 1430

         

Fryer chickens went on sale ($.68/pound) right after Thanksgiving. I purchased 16 of them and much to my surprise on the day I was butterflying them I discovered that they came complete with neck, gizzards, liver and heart. Joy! A "found dish" within the already purchased ingredients that I could offer at the event for those brave enough to try it. I did purchase (on sale) an additional package of livers, gizzards and hearts, and chicken feet.

I have to chuckle because at this particular event, the diner's got to enjoy mortis (mortrews), entrails (trayne roast), compost (pickled vegetables) and garbage (offal) all while being entertained with a boar's head. I'm not sure if anyone else realized it or if I have just let the cat out of the bag, but 12th night had a bit of an accidental darker theme going on :-D

xvij - Garbage. Take fayre garbagys of chykonys, as the hed, the fete, the lyuerys, an the gysowrys; washe hem clene, an caste hem in a fayre potte, an caste ther-to freysshe brothe of Beef or ellys of moton, an let it boyle; an a-lye it wyth brede, an ley on Pepir an Safroun, Maces, Clowys, an a lytil verious an salt, an serue forth in the maner as a Sewe.

17 - Garbage - Take fair garbage of chickens, as the head, the feet, the liver, and the gizzard; wash them clean, and caste them in a fair pot, and caste there-to fresh broth of beef or else of mutton, and let it boil; and mix it with bread, and lay on pepper and saffron, mace, cloves, and a little verjuice and salt, and serve forth in the manner as a stew

Garbage - stewed chicken offal (hearts, gizzards, livers, feet, neck) Harl. MS 279, 1430

1 1/2-2 pounds of chicken offal
1 c. beef broth
2 tbsp. bread crumbs
1/2 tsp. pepper (I used my pepper mix which is made from black pepper, cubebs, long peppers and grains of paradise)
pinch of saffron
1 tsp. mace
1/4 tsp. clove
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt

Clean your offal; this means rinsing away blood, cutting gizzards in half and removing anything you find inside of them (it's part of the digestive system and you -don't- want to eat that!), trim away the lining of the gizzard, trimming fat, green parts and membranes from the livers, remove connective tissue from hearts, wash the feet, peel if you want (I didn't), clip the toes if you want (I didn't). Make sure that you clean and sanitize your work surface after. Offal is delicious but it does carry a higher risk of contamination.

Place all ingredients in a pot, bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and cook until tender. I have to confess that I treated the garbage like I treat a stock and simmered this for about six hours after which I served. What I discovered is the livers mostly disappear, they cook away to almost nothing, flavoring the broth.

Those who tried it loved it, and someone took home the left overs. If rumor is true, chicken feet were a much sought after commodity.

Baronial 12th Night - Beef-y-stewed –Stewed Beef Harl. MS 279, 1430

              

 

.vj. Beef y-Stywyd.—Take fayre beef of þe rybbys of þe fore quarterys, an smyte in fayre pecys, an wasche þe beef in-to a fayre potte; þan take þe water þat þe beef was soþin yn, an strayne it þorw a straynowr, an sethe þe same water and beef in a potte, an let hem boyle to-gederys; þan take canel, clowes, maces, graynys of parise, quibibes, and oynons y-mynced, perceli, an sawge, an caste þer-to, an let hem boyle to-gederys; an þan take a lof of brede, an stepe it with brothe an venegre, an þan draw it þorw a straynoure, and let it be stylle; an whan it is nere y-now, caste þe lycour þer-to, but nowt to moche, an þan let boyle onys, an cast safroun þer-to a quantyte; þan take salt an venegre, and cast þer-to, an loke þat it be poynaunt y-now, & serue forth.

6. Beef Stewed - Take fair beef of the ribs of the fore quarters, and chop (smite) in fair pieces, and wash the beef into a fair pot; then take the water that the beef was washed (sothin) in, and strain it through a strainer, and set the same water and beef in a pot, and let them boil together; then take cinnamon, cloves, mace, grains of paradise, cubebs, and onions minced, parsley and sage, and cast thereto and let them boil together; and then take a loaf of bread, and steep it with broth and vinegar, and then draw it through a strainer, and let it be still; and when it is near enough, cast the liquor thereto, but not too much, and then let boil once, and cast saffron thereto a quantity; then take salt and vinegar and cast thereto, and look that it be sharp (sour) enough, and serve forth.

To Make Stock

Making your own stocks are very cost effective for feasts, so save your bones and your scraps of veggies! Just toss them in a ziplock bag in the freezer until you have enough to make a good stock. Make your stock and can or freeze until needed.

There are two separate ways to make stock. The first is on the stove top/slow cooker and the second is in your oven. I made the chicken and pork stock on the stove top and the beef stock in the oven. For any stock you will need: bones (preferably some with meat) if you are making a meat based stock, vegetables, aromatics, water and time--lots and lots of time.

A good stock will -always- start with cold water. During the initial boiling of the stock--skim, skim, skim. You want to remove any and all impurities that come to the surface. After the initial boiling, lower your temperature to a simmer and *never, ever!* stir the stock. Your stock should be clear and richly colored. A really good meat stock will convert to a gelatin when cold. This happens because the collagin in the bones dissolves which can only happen during a very long simmering process. If you are in a hurry, you can make a good broth, but you cannot make a good stock. A good stock has a deep, well developed flavor that is imparted through the aromatics and vegetables. I prefer to roast my bones before making any meat stock which adds an additional flavor component. If you are making a vegetable stock be sure to include mushrooms, tomatoes (if not cooking period), nori etc.--do not skip this. These vegetables create "umami", a savory or meaty flavor to your stock which is very much needed in vegetable stock.

To make the beef stock for the beef y-stewed I coated approximately 4 pounds of bones with a little bit of oil, salt and pepper and roasted in a 400 degree oven until they were brown. I used rib bones that I found on sale, along with a handful of marrow bones in addition to bones I had saved up.

My basic veggie blend for any stock includes a couple of carrots, celery and onions. I also use parsley, rosemary, thyme, bay and black pepper to the stock. If I have it, I add garlic. Wash your vegetables, roughly chop and make a bed of them for your roasted bones. A good rule of thumb to remember is that for every pound of bones you will need approximately 2 quarts of water. When making stock, be sure that the bones are covered by at least an inch. Add your aromatics, bring to a boil, skim off the scum and then lower the heat and simmer. Simmer times vary but I prefer about five hours for most stocks. Use your best judgment. If you are going to cook your stock in the oven, turn the heat down to about 275 degrees and let simmer over night.

Once you have finished cooking your stock, strain it at least once to make sure that you are removing all the bits. I do this by lining a wire strainer with a piece of muslin and pouring the stock through it. Allow your stock to cool overnight. Once my stock has cooled I remove the fat, reheat and strain it once again just to make sure that it is very clear.

.vj. Beef y-Stywyd.—Take fayre beef of þe rybbys of þe fore quarterys, an smyte in fayre pecys, an wasche þe beef in-to a fayre potte; þan take þe water þat þe beef was soþin yn, an strayne it þorw a straynowr, an sethe þe same water and beef in a potte, an let hem boyle to-gederys; þan take canel, clowes, maces, graynys of parise, quibibes, and oynons y-mynced, perceli, an sawge, an caste þer-to, an let hem boyle to-gederys; an þan take a lof of brede, an stepe it with brothe an venegre, an þan draw it þorw a straynoure, and let it be stylle; an whan it is nere y-now, caste þe lycour þer-to, but nowt to moche, an þan let boyle onys, an cast safroun þer-to a quantyte; þan take salt an venegre, and cast þer-to, an loke þat it be poynaunt y-now, & serue forth.


6. Beef Stewed - Take fair beef of the ribs of the fore quarters, and chop (smite) in fair pieces, and wash the beef into a fair pot; then take the water that the beef was washed (sothin) in, and strain it through a strainer, and set the same water and beef in a pot, and let them boil together; then take cinnamon, cloves, mace, grains of paradise, cubebs, and onions minced, parsley and sage, and cast thereto and let them boil together; and then take a loaf of bread, and steep it with broth and vinegar, and then draw it through a strainer, and let it be still; and when it is near enough, cast the liquor thereto, but not too much, and then let boil once, and cast saffron thereto a quantity; then take salt and vinegar and cast thereto, and look that it be sharp (sour) enough, and serve forth.


Beef-y-stewed –stewed beef Harl. MS 279, 1430

2 pounds stew beef
6 cups stock (you can sub plain water, water w/beef bouillon cubes, or broth)
1/2 tsp. each cinnamon and mace
1/4 tsp. each clove, cubebs and grains of paradise
1 bag pearl onions, or, one medium onion sliced
1 tbsp. parsley
1/2 tbsp. dried sage
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
pinch of saffron
1 tsp. salt or to taste
1/4 tsp. pepper or poudre forte
1/2 to 1 cup breadcrumbs depending on preference

Place onions in a pot and bring to a boil, let them cook approximately five minutes or until they start to become transparent and then drain. Place remainder of ingredients with the exception of the bread crumbs into your pot along with your onions and cook until the beef is tender, approximately an hour. Spoon out about 2 cups of broth, add them to your bread crumbs (I have a confession to make, I honestly have no idea how much broth I added to the bread crumbs, I wanted to make it juicy enough--so 2 cups is a guess), place in the food processor and pulse or grind until you make a slurry. Return this mixture back to your stew and cook until mixture has thickened.

As an alternative and in deference to modern tastes, you could flour and season your beef ahead of time and cook in oil before stewing.

Mortrews of Pork & Chicken and Mortrews of Fish - Baronial 12th Night Recipes

Delicious appetizers on the table featuring black olives, let lardes, capers, mortrews of pork & chicken, green olives, caperberries and mortrews of fish

Mortrews of Pork & Chicken and Mortrews of Fish - an early form of pate Harl. MS 279, 1430

I did make a few changes from the original post (Mortrews of Chicken & Pork and Fish). In deference to modern tastes I added additional spicing to both of the Mortrews, and smoked the fish for the Mortrews of fish. Lastly I subbed broth for the ale in the Mortrews of pork and chicken, and whole milk for the almond milk in the Mortrews of Fish.

.xliiij. Mortrewys de Fleyssh.—Take Porke, an seþe it wyl; þanne take it vppe and pulle a-way þe Swerde,*. [Rind, skin. ] an pyke owt þe bonys, an hakke it and grynd it smal; þenne take þe sylf brothe, & temper it with ale; þen take fayre gratyd brede, & do þer-to, an seþe it, an coloure it with Saffroun, & lye it with ȝolkys of eyroun, & make it euen Salt, & caste pouder Gyngere, a-bouyn on þe dysshe.

xliiij - Mortrewys de Fleyssh. Take Porke, an sethe it wyl; thanne take it vppe and pulle a-way the Swerde, (Note: Rind, skin) an pyke owt the bonys, an hakke it and grynd it smal; thenne take the sylf brothe, and temper it with ale; then take fayre gratyd brede, and do ther-to, an sethe it, an coloure it with Saffroun, and lye it with 3olkys of eyroun, and make it euen Salt, and caste pouder Gyngere, a-bouyn on the dysshe.

44. Mortrews of Flesh - Take pork, and cook it well; then take it up and pull away the skin, and pick out the bones and hack it and grind it small; then take the self broth (the same broth you cooked it in, and temper it with ale; then take fair grated bread, and do thereto, and cook it, and color it with saffron, and mix it with yolks of eggs, and make it even salt, and caste powder ginger, above on the dish.

Mortrews of Pork and Chicken

2 ½ pounds pork shoulder
1 pound bone in, skin on chicken (I used chicken leg quarters)
½ pound bacon ends and pieces
Pinch of Saffron
1 tbsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. ground mustard
¾ tsp. ground pepper
½ tsp. fine spices
1/3 cup broth
1 egg beaten
1/3 cup dried bread crumbs
Opt. ½ tsp. fresh thyme

Dried Cherries to decorate

Boil chicken, pork and bacon together with just enough broth to cover until tender. Remove from heat and allow to cool overnight. Remove meat from the broth and set broth aside to reserve for later. Clean the meat being sure to pick off skin, bones, fat and gristle. Place meat into a blender and grind coarsely, adding broth if needed.

Please note: the boiled bacon is not that appetizing when cold, so feel free to remove it as well-- I did!


After meat has been ground add spices and place into a pot. Beat eggs and pour over bread crumbs, add enough broth to make bread wet and blend the egg and bread mixture until it becomes a smooth past. Add bread mixture to the meat, and cook, stirring constantly until it thickens into custard like consistency. Put into molds and serve. Optional, decorate with thyme and dried cherries.

How to Brine Fish

1 quart water
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 tbsp. sugar or brown sugar

Mix together water, salt and sugar. You can add additional flavorings or spices if you choose at this point. Add meat making sure that the meat is covered completely with the brine. Soak for a minimum of 1 hour or overnight. For every pound of meat, you will need 1 quart of brine.

How to Smoke Fish

Smoked fish is delicious and I wanted to smoke the fish in the Mortrews of Fish because while delicious, the dish is a bit bland. I used cherry wood to smoke the fish, but you could also use alder, apple or any sweet, mild wood. There are two methods to smoke food; cold smoking and hot smoking.

Cold smoking is done at temperatures below 130 degrees Fahrenheit for several hours to several days. This adds smoke flavoring to your food but does not cook it. Also note--this does put your food into the "danger zone" for food safety and can create an environment for harmful bacteria (botulism and listeria) to rapidly grow. I cannot stress enough how careful you must be when cold smoking. I recognize that many people do it successfully (I do), but I would not use this method for an event.

Interesting fact-- Botulus (from which we derive botulism) is the Latin word for...sausage...hmmmsss

This is why I chose to hot smoke the fish for the event. Hot smoking not only imparts flavor it cooks and dries the food as well, which is why it is important to *brine* your food before smoking. Even after brining my poor fish was more like fish jerky then the delicate flakes I wanted. BUT--easily worked with by soaking overnight in stock, and being mixed 50/50 with unsmoked fish. I digress.

Fattier fish are better for smoking, whole fish or skin on fish before skinless, boneless fillets. Remember this. You will want to brine your fish at a minimum of 15 minutes per pound before smoking. Also, you might want to soak some of the wood that you are using for smoking and heat the smoker a bit with it before adding your fish. I used an electric smoker and fell in love. It is now on my wish list, but any smoker will work (even your oven if you are in a pinch). Some sights recommend heating the fish at approximately 150 degrees for two hours and then turning the temperature up to 200 degrees to complete the process. I went full in at 200 degrees and the cod had PLENTY of flavor.

.xliij. Mortrewes of Fysshe.—Take Gornard or Congere, a-fore þe navel wyth þe grece (for be-hynde þe navel he is hery*. [Hairy. ] of bonys), or Codlyng, þe lyuer an þe Spaune, an sethe it y-now in fayre Water, and pyke owt þe bonys, and grynde þe fysshe in a Morter, an temper it vp wyth Almaunde Mylke, an caste þer-to gratyd brede; þan take yt vp, an put it on a fayre potte, an let boyle; þan caste þer-to Sugre and Salt, an serue it forth as other Mortrewys. And loke þat þow caste Gyngere y-now a-boue.

xliij - Mortrewes of Fysshe. Take Gornard or Congere, a-fore the navel wyth the grece (for be-hynde the navel he is hery (Note: Hairy) of bonys), or Codlyng, the lyuer an the Spaune, an sethe it y-now in fayre Water, and pyke owt the bonys, and grynde the fysshe in a Morter, an temper it vp wyth Almaunde Mylke, an caste ther-to gratyd brede; than take yt vp, an put it on a fayre potte, an let boyle; than caste ther-to Sugre and Salt, an serue it forth as other Mortrewys. And loke that thow caste Gyngere y-now a-boue.

43 - Mortrews of Fish - Take gurnard, or conger (eel), before the navel with the grease (for behind the navel he is hairy of bones), or codling (an inferior for of cod), the liver and the eggs, and cook it enough in fair water, and pick out the bones, and grind the fish in a mortar, and temper it up with almond milk, and cast there-to grated bread; then take it up and put it on a fair pot, and let boil; then cast thereto sugar and salt, and serve it fort as other motrews. And look that you caste ginger enough above.


Motrews of Fish

2-3 pounds smoked fish (I used cod)
1 1/2 cups whole milk (can sub creme fraiche or sour cream)
2 cups fish stock (can sub chicken or pork broth)
1/2 to 1 cup bread crumbs
1 ½ tbsp. salt
3/4 tbsp. sugar
Opt. Garnish with vinegar and boiled shrimps, 1 tbsp. tarragon, 1/2 tsp. lemon juice, 1/2 tsp. ground pepper

Once again I used frozen cod (almost all fish we get are frozen or prohibitively expensive if fresh). I brined the fish I was smoking overnight, then dried it off and put it in the smoker for approximately an hour and a half to two hours. The thinner parts of the fish were, as stated previously, like fish jerky. I soaked the fish in broth overnight. The next day I boiled the remainder of the fish and coarsely ground the two together. Returned to the pot, added the bread crumbs, salt, sugar, tarragon, lemon juice and ground pepper and the milk and cooked till thickened.

When serving I garnished with boiled shrimps.

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - lv. Iuschelle of Fysshe.

lv. Iuschelle of Fysshe - Fish Dumplings

This unusual recipe found in  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  immediately caught my eye and I had to try it.  Originally I had assumed that this dish would produce results similar to Guisseƚƚ, a recipe for a savory bread dumpling, cooked in broth. I had always been a bit uncertain of that research, until I realized that the formula ofr Iuschelle of Fysshe is very similar to modern day quenelles, mixtures of meat or fish combined with breadcrumbs and cream that are usually poached.  

To follow up on the theory it became important to understand what the term Iuschelle meant. The Middle English Dictionary defines Iuschelle (jussel n. Also jus(s)elle, jushel(le & guissel.) as:

A dish made of eggs, or eggs mixed with grated bread, cooked in a seasoned broth; ~ of flesh; ~ sengle; ~ enforced, such a dish served with a sweet and spicy creamed sauce; (b) a dish made of fish roe and grated bread mixed and cooked in a fish broth; ~ of fish.

The Middle English Compendium defines frye as: 

Fri(e) - Also frī(e n.(2) Also friʒe (frye). Spawn or the young of fish; small fish

I believe that instead of the "roe" or the mass of eggs found inside a fish, this recipe is referring to the fry or newly hatched fish that no longer have an egg sac attached. I would suggest using any available smaller fish to create this recipe, or substituting roe for the fry. If you are unable to get pike, you may want to substitute cod, pollock, whiting, catfish or any other lean white fish.

.lv. Iuschelle of Fysshe.—Take fayre Frye of Pyke, and caste it raw on a morter, an caste þer-to gratid brede, an bray hem as smale as þow mayste; & ȝif it be to stondyng, caste þer-to Almaunde mylke, an bray hem to-gederys, an stere it to-gederys, & caste þer-to a littel Safroun & Salt, an whyte Sugre, an putte al in a fayre Treen bolle, & toyle*. [Twillein Douce MS. ] it to-gederys wyth þin hond, an loke þat it be noȝt to chargeaunt, but as a man may pore it out of þe bolle; and þan take a Chafoure or a panne, an caste þer-in fayre grauey of pyke or of Freysshe Samoun, y-draw þorw a straynoure, & sette[leaf 14.] it on þe fyre; þanne take fayre Percely an Sawge, an caste þer-to, an lat it boyle, an caste þer-to a lytil Safroun an Salt; and whan it hath y-boylid a whyle, stere it faste, an caste þe Stuffe þer-to, an stere it euermore; an whan alle is oute of þe bolle, caste a litil an a litil in-to þe chafoure, or þe panne; stere it soffter an sofftere, tylle it come to-gedere; þan gader it to-gederys with a ladelle or a Skymoure, softe, tille it be round to-gedere; þanne take it fro þe fyre, an sette þe vesselle on a fewe colys, an late it wexe styf be hys owne acord; þan serue forth.

55. Juschelle of Fish - Take fair fry of pike, and caste it raw on a mortar, and cast there-to grated bread, and bray them as small as you may; and if it be to standing (thick), caste there-to almond milk, and bray them together; and stir it together, and caste there-to a little saffron and salt, and white sugar, and put all in a fair tureen bowl and stir it together with your hand, and look that it be not to thick, but as a man may pour it out of the bowl; and then take a chafing dish or a pan, and caste there-in fair gravy of pike, or of fresh salmon, drawn through a strainer and set it on the fire, then take fair parsley and sage, and caste there-to, and let it boil, and cast there-to a little saffron and salt, and when it has boiled a while, stir it fast, and cast the stuff there-to and stir it evermore; an when all is out of the bowl, cast a little and a little in to the chafing-dish or the pan; stir it softer and softer, till it come together; then gather it to together with a ladle or a skimmer, soft, till it be round together; then take it from the fire, and set the vessel on a few coals, and let it wax stiff be his own accord; then serve forth.

Recipe Serves 6 - 8 (or more as smaller appetizers)

Fish Dumplings

1 pound lean white fish, cut into 1" pieces
2 slices bread, crusts removed
1 cup almond milk
1 egg white (to help bind fish- included here because eggs are a primary ingredient in Guisseƚƚ but are missing from this recipe)
Pinch of saffron
Salt and pepper to taste
Sugar to taste

Broth

4 cups fish stock
3 sprigs of fresh parsley (can substitute 1 tbsp. dried)
1/2 tsp. sage
Pinch of Saffron


Please, please, please--this cannot be stressed enough--use a well flavored stock (gravy) for your broth to poach the dumplings in, otherwise this dish will be very bland. I would strongly suggest that you make your own following the directions that can be found here, and substituting fish bones for beef or chicken bones. You may also want to round out the flavor of the stock by adding some fennel and white wine as part of the cooking liquid.

If you are unable to secure enough fish scraps and bones to make a broth, you can substitute a 50/50 mixture of vegetable stock and chicken stock. I would caution against using a premade "seafood stock" unless you are very certain that nobody with a shellfish allergy will be present. Seafood stock is usually made with shells of crab, shrimp, lobster in addition to fish bones.


Warm the milk up slightly and add saffron to it. Allow it to come to a cool temperature.


To make your dumplings you will want to soak your bread in the milk and then mash it until it becomes a paste. Grind your fish, either by using a blender, or using a sausage maker. It is important that the fish retain some texture and is not a paste. Blend the bread paste with the fish and remaining ingredients.

Here you have a choice. You can follow the medieval instructions of bringing the broth to a boil, stirring it quickly and adding your fish mixture to the broth. This, I imagine will act like poaching an egg, and allow the mixture to come together similar to a poached egg, or, like the Guissel, form many jagged dumplings of an uneven size. Continue to stir until the mixture becomes thick. The instructions state to " then take it from the fire, and set the vessel on a few coals, and let it wax stiff be his own accord; then serve forth." This method appears to suggest that the dumplings should be allowed to continue to cook for a short time before serving.

Or, you can diverge (as I did) and follow a more modern method of bringing a large pot of salted water to just below a simmer, and dropping your dough into it by the tablespoonful. If you are following this method, the dumplings will fall to the bottom of the pot and then rise up when they are completely cooked.


To serve, place your dumplings into your broth, garnish as desired and serve it forth.


This may seem like a very "fussy" dish to serve at an event, however, the dumplings can be made ahead of time and frozen prior to poaching. Day of the event, remove your frozen dumplings, place them in the boiling and salted water and proceed as per usual.

This is a very delicate dish, it could serve as a pottage in a first course, or, the dumplings can be served without broth or sauce on the side of a main dish in the second course as a garnish, or to round out the meal. I would suggest that plating the fish dumplings in a thin puddle of beautifully hot stock, garnished with boiled vegetables (asparagus, leeks, parsnips or a non-orange carrot) would be lovely.

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Ancient Cookery [Arundel 334], (England, 1425)

Jussel of sysshe. Take frye of female pike, and pille away the skyn; and take the liver of codlinge, and bray altogeder; and take grated bred and cast therto in the brayinge, and when it waxes stif put hit into a chargeour, and colour hit depe with saffron; and then take grave of pyke, and grave of congur, and of calver salmon, and put al into a panne; and take parcel (parsley), and sauge hewen, but not too smalle, and boyle hit ensemble.; and when hit is boyled put in a potstik and stere hit wel, and ' when hit begynnes to crudde do away the potstik, and let hit boyle afterwarde a gode qwyle ; and then set hit doun, and dresse up fix leches in a dysshe, and strawe theron pouder of ginger; and serve hit forthe.

Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - Cxxxvij. Chykonys in dropey Chicken with Gravy & .Clij. Capoun in Salome - Capon and Gravy

Chykonys in dropey with a Diuers Sallets boyled

When I came across this set of instructions in 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 Thomas Austin I became excited and knew I had to try it.  When I first read through it, I believed that it contained some of the earliest instructions for using roux as a thickening agent.  I fell into the trap of using what I knew and applying it creating the assumption that I would know what the end result would be. Mia Culpa. 

What is dropey? The the Middle English Dictionary defines "Dropey" as a kind of sauce for fowl.  

drope (n.) Also drope, dropeie, (?error) drore.  A sauce or dressing for fowl.  (a1399) Form Cury p.18: Dropee.  Take blanched Almandes, grynde hem and temper hem up with gode broth; take Oynons..and frye hem and do thereto: take smale bryddes, parboyle hem [etc.]. ?c1425 Arun. Cook. Recipes 429: Drore to Potage. Take almonds..brothe of flesshe...onyons..small briddes [etc.] ibid. 449: At the seconde course drope, and rose to potage. al450 Hrl.Cook.Bk.(1) 30: Chykons in dropeye. 

A pottage is anything that can be cooked in a pot. Fortified by the definition I found, I had convinced myself that using a mixture of the almond milk, wheat starch or rice flour and the alkanet colored grease was the correct direction to go. However, according to the "The Food History Timeline", roux is a 17th century French preparation. 

 Roux in French literally means 'reddish' (or 'orange') hence the first roux were made by cooking flour and butter together until a reddish tint was obtained then using this to thicken a souce or broth. Its widespread use in French cooking seems to date from the mid-17th century. At that time, La Varenne (1651) described the preparation of a liaison de farine (flour thickener) made by cooking flour in lard and, by the end of the century, cooks are referring to this mixture either as farine frit or roux.

What then was the purpose of mixing the grease and alkenade together as we are advised to? 

"þen take fayre freysshe grece, & putte Alkenade þer-to, & gader his coloure þer-of"

It was not until I had researched similar recipes that I found the answer.  One of the earliest versions of Chykonys in Dropey can be found in "The Forme of Cury" by Samuel Pegge. There is another set of instructions for a dish called Fonnell, that instructs us to use grease that has been heated until it melted with alkanet as a decoration for the dish before it is sent out to the table.  I have used these instructions for the interpretation of Chyknoys in Dropey presented above. 

FONNELL [1]. XX.III. II.

Take Almandes unblaunched. grynde hem and drawe hem up with gode broth, take a lombe [2] or a kidde and half rost hym. or the þridde [3] part, smyte hym in gobetes and cast hym to the mylke. take smale briddes yfasted and ystyned [4]. and do þerto sugur, powdour of canell and salt, take zolkes of ayrenn harde ysode and cleeue [5] a two and ypaunced [6] with flour of canell and florish þe sewe above. take alkenet fryed and yfoundred [7] and droppe above with a feþur [8] and messe it forth.

[1] Fonnell. Nothing in the recipe leads to the etymon of this multifarious dish. [2] Lombe. Lamb. [3] thridde. Third, per metathesin. [4] yfasted (made secure) and ystyned (closed). [5] cleeue. cloven. [6] ypaunced. pounced. [7] yfoundred. melted, dissolved. [8] feþ'. feather.

Original Recipe

.Cxxxvij. Chykons in dropeye.—They schul ben fayre y-boylid in fayre watere tyl þey ben y-now, þen take hem fyrst, & choppe hem smal: & whan þey ben y-now, tempere vppe a gode Almaunde mylke of þe same, & with Wyne: a-lye it with Amyndon, oþer with [leaf 24.] floure of Rys: þen take fayre freysshe grece, & putte Alkenade þer-to, & gader his coloure þer-of, & ley þe quarterys .v. or .vj. in a dysshe, as it wole come a-bowte, & Salt it atte þe dressoure, sprynge with a feþer or .ij. here & þere a-bowte þe dysshe; & ȝif þou lyst, put þer-on pouder of Gyngere, but noȝt a-boue, but in þe potage, & þan serue forth.

Interpretation

137 - Chicken in Dropeye - They should be fair boiled in fair water till they be enough, then take them first and chop them small, and when they be enough, temper up a good almond milk of the same, and with wine, mix with wheat starch, or with flour of rice, then take fair fresh grease, and put alkanet there-to, and gather his color there-of and let they be quarters five or six in a dish, as it will come about, and salt it at the dresser, sprinkle (sprynge) with a feather or two here and there about the dish, and if you like, put there-on powder ginger, but not above, but in the potage, and then serve forth.

Chicken in Dropey 

Yield: 2 Servings

Ingredients

2 boneless and skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs (for ease of serving)
1 cup almond milk made with broth chicken was boiled in

1 tbsp. wheat starch or riceflour, or 1 1/2 tbsp. unbleached white all purpose flour
2 tbsp. lard (preferred), or butter or oil can be substituted (I used bacon grease)

1 1/2 tsp. powdered alkanet

1/2 tsp. salt 

1/4 tsp. pepper 

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

Opt: 1 chicken bouilloncube or 1 cup  chicken stock instead of water to cook chicken in for extra flavor, up to 1/4 cup dry white wine.

Directions

Add alkanet powder to oil, lard or butter and heat slowly. Allow alkanet and oil to steep while completing the remaining steps.  Alternately, you can do this step ahead of time, and allow oil and alkanet to steep overnight. 

Boil your chicken until it is tender. Remove from broth and keep warm.  

Use the broth the chicken that was cooked in to make your almond milk. For instructions on how to make your own quick almond milk, visit this link:  Almond Milk

Heat almond milk and wine if you are using it, to just below a simmer and add wheat starch or rice flour, salt and pepper.  Cook until the sauce begins to thicken.  Once sauce begins to thicken remove from the heat and allow the carry over to continue to cook it.  

To Serve: 

For ease of presentation, serve the chicken sliced, sprinkled with a bit of salt and pepper.  Drizzle the almond milk sauce over the top of the chicken and then decorate with the alkanet oil and a pinch of powdered ginger. 

Note:  This is a dish that had been boiled in broth and is served with a sauce. It would be an appropriate dish to serve before a dish of roasted meats as a first course in a "modern medieval feast".

I found this to be a very simple and easy dish to put together, I paired it with a boiled salad made of mixed greens, onions and currants that had been boiled in water, and then sprinkled with powdered douce and fresh made bread.  The house smells divine! 

It was a good meal enjoyed by both me and the taste tester.  I did not use the wine in the recipe but opted to use bouillon cubes to add additional flavor to the chicken as it cooked.  

This is a very striking dish to look at, and a little bit of the alkanet oil does go a long way.  Although alkanet is a bit difficult to obtain, and slightly costly, the cost is offset by how far a little bit of it would go. In addition to being a good course to serve before a roasted, fried, baked or grilled course, this would make a very lovely luncheon for royalty. 

.Clij. Capoun in Salome.—Take a Capoun & skalde hym, Roste hym, þen take þikke Almaunde mylke, temper it wyth wyne Whyte oþer Red, take a lytyl Saunderys & a lytyl Safroun, & make it a marbyl coloure, & so atte þe dressoure þrow on hym in ye kychoun, & þrow þe Mylke a-boue, & þat is most commelyche, & serue forth.

Clij - Capoun in Salome. Take a Capoun and skalde hym, Roste hym, then take thikke Almaunde mylke, temper it wyth wyne Whyte other Red, take a lytyl Saunderys and a lytyl Safroun, and make it a marbyl coloure, and so atte the dressoure throw on hym in ye kychoun, and throw the Mylke a-boue, and that is most comely, and serue forth.

152.  Capon in Salome.  Take a capon and scald him, roast him, then take thick almond milk, temper it with wine, white or red, take a little saunders, and a little saffron, and make it a marble color, and so at the dresser, throw him in the kitchen, and throw the mil above, and that is most comely, and serve forth. 

2 boneless and skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs (for ease of serving)
1 cup almond milk made with 1/4 cup white or red wine

1 1/2 tsp. powdered saffron or sanders 

1/2 tsp. salt  (for modern taste)

1/4 tsp. pepper (for modern taste)

As above.  

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Forme of Cury (England, 1390)

DREPEE [1]. XIX.

Take blanched Almandes grynde hem and temper hem up with gode broth take Oynouns a grete quantite parboyle hem and frye hem and do þerto. take smale bryddes [2] parboyle hem and do þerto Pellydore [3] and salt. and a lytel grece.

[1] Drepee. Qu. [2] bryddes. Birds. Per metathesin; v. R. in Indice. [3] Pellydore. Perhaps pellitory. Peletour, 104.

Fourme of Curye [Rylands MS 7] (England, 1390)

.xix. Drepee. Take blaunched almaundes, grynd hem & temper up with gode broth take oynouns a grete quantite, & boile hem & fry hem & fo therto, take smale briddes perboile hem & do therto, & do therto pellydore & salt & a litul grece.

Ancient Cookery [Arundel 334] (England, 1425)

Servise on flesshe-day. Bores-hed enarmed (ornamented), and bruce to potage; and therwith beefs, and moton, and pestels (legs) of porke; and therwith swan and conynge rosted, and tarte. 

At the seconde course drope, and rose to potage; and therwith maudelard and faisant, and chekons farsed (stuffed) and rosted, and malachis baken. 

At the thridde course conynges in grave, and bore in brasc to potage; and therwith teles rosted, and partriches, ande woodcock, and snytes, and raffyolys baken, and flampoyntes.

Drore to potage. Take almondes, and blaunche hom, and grynde hom, and temper hit up wyth gode brothe of flesshe, and do hit in a pot, 'and let hit sethe; and take onyons, and mince hom, andfrye hom in freshe greeseand do therto; then take smale briddes, and parboyle hom, and do thereto, and put thereto pouder of canel, and of clowes, and a lytel faire grees, and let hit be white, and let hit boyle, and serve it forthe.