A Dynere of Flesche — John Russell’s Medieval Feast and the Logic of Digestion

Roasted peacock served “re-plumed,” a classic showpiece in late-medieval banquets. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Introduction

In the mid-fifteenth century, court official John Russell compiled the Boke of Nurture (Harley MS 4011), a manual of etiquette, service, and feasting. Among its most intriguing passages is “A Dynere of Flesche”—a model feast for a flesh day. At first glance it reads like excess: swan, peacock, venison, custards, jellies, fritters, sotelties. But beneath the display lies clear order, guided by humoral theory and the theory of digestion.

• Humoral theory:

• Foods are classified hot/cold, moist/dry.
• The goal was balance — so heavy/dry meats might be paired with moist/sweet sauces, or cooling jellies follow heating roasts.

The Ideal Temperament

Humoral theory didn’t just classify food — it also described people. The ideal man, according to Galenic medicine, was hot and moist: warm in spirit, strong in digestion, balanced in humors. Too much heat could cause choler (anger, fevers); too much cold led to melancholy. Feasts like Russell’s were arranged to steer everyone—young, old, male, female—toward this balanced, “ideal” state after eating.

• Theory of Digestion (stomach as a fireplace model):

  • Light, quick-digesting foods first (whet the appetite, “open the stomach”).

  • Heavy meats mid-meal (need the appetite at full flame).

  • Cooling or binding foods at the end (to “close the stomach” and aid digestion).

  • Spices and hippocras (spiced wine) seal the stomach and prevent putrefaction.

Feasting, Status, and Seasonality

Russell’s menu was a model feast—aspirational and didactic. It reflected both status and medical order:

• Luxury foods: swan, peacock, crane, bustard, sea bream inland, imported sugar, almonds, and rice.
• Sotelties: allegorical sugar or pastry sculptures, more about piety and performance than eating.
• Hierarchy: the high table saw the full spread; lower tables ate simpler portions.
• Seasonality: autumn/winter hunting game + preserved foods (brawn, baked quinces, hippocras). Likely a winter festival setting—Christmas or Twelfth Night.

The Logic of the Courses

How Many Did This Feed?

Russell never specifies numbers. Most scholars agree that menus like this modeled an ideal high-table feast, not the full hall of 200+ diners. Lower tables would have received simpler fare, with servants plainer still. The “Dynere of Flesche” was about display and order at the top table, not uniform abundance.

First Course: Awakening the Appetite

The feast begins with brawn of boar with mustard. Preserved brawn (salted/pressed) was hot/dry, paired with mustard (also hot/dry) to stimulate appetite. Then came pottages of herbs, spice, and wine (warm, moist, aromatic), followed by staples—beef and mutton, heavy and dry but softened by sauces. Showpieces—pheasant and swan with chawdron sauce, capons, pig, venison bake—balanced humors by variety. The course lifted with leches and fritters, hot/oily appetite stimulants, and paused with a sotelty of the Annunciation.

Why pork first?

Not a roast, but salted/pressed boar. Preservation shifted its qualities hotter/drier. With mustard, it worked as an appetite-opener and prestige symbol.

Beef & mutton early?

Normally heavy, but softened in pottage. Their presence early also reinforced abundance—English tables expected them as staples.

Swan with chawdron

Swan was tough and hot/dry. Prestige demanded its early appearance. Chawdron (entrails sauce) moistened and balanced the dish.

Second Course: Heaviest Roasts & Entremets

The second course starts gently with blancmanger (chicken and almond, moist and white) and jellies (cooling, clarifying). Then came the heaviest fare: venison, kid, fawn, coney, bustard, stork, crane, peacock, heron. These were dry/hot meats, demanding the stomach’s “strongest fire.”

Between them: entremets—custards, pastries, sweet leches—moist refreshers, palate cleansers, and spectacles. A fritter revived appetite, and an angelic sotelty provided allegory and pause.

What are Entremets?

“Between-dishes” that lighten the palate after heavy roasts. Could be custards, jellies, fritters, or allegories. They refreshed digestion and dazzled guests.

Sea bream among roasts?

Fish are cooling and moist, but sea bream inland was a rarity. Its placement showed luxury and variety, more than medical logic.

Fritters everywhere

Appearing in every course, fritters weren’t just sweets. Fried foods (hot/dry) re-stimulated appetite, acting like edible palate cleansers.

Third Course: Stepping Down

Cream of almonds and mawmany were restorative and nourishing. Smaller roasts—curlews, snipes, quails, sparrows—replaced great birds. Moist/cooling dishes returned: perch in jelly, crayfish. Quinces baked (astringent) helped close digestion, alongside sage fritters and spiced leches. A Magi sotelty provided solemn close.

Quinces as Closers

Medieval medical texts praised quinces for their astringency. Baked or stewed, they were thought to “bind the stomach” and prevent excess humors. Their placement late in Russell’s menu follows regimen advice: astringent fruit near the end ensured the feast ended in balance.

Finale: Issue & Sendoff

The issue de table included pippins (apples) with caraway comfits, custard (blaunderelle), wafers, and hippocras. Apples (cold/dry) restrained excess; caraway (hot/dry) dispelled wind; hippocras (spiced wine) “sealed” the stomach.

Apples & Caraway

Bartholomaeus Anglicus: apples “close the stomach and make good digestion.” Andrew Boorde: “rawe apples do stoppe the bely, and do coole a man.” Gerard: caraway comfits “are taken for the winde, and against the collick.” Together: a classic period pairing, served raw with candied spice.

Sotelties

These edible allegories (Annunciation, angels, Magi) weren’t about digestion. They refreshed the spirit and gave rhythm between heavy dishes.

Costly Showpieces

Some dishes weren’t about flavor at all. Peacock and swan were tough and gamey, yet served re-feathered as symbols of prestige. Sea bream inland was a logistical feat, showing the household’s reach. Sugar jellies and sotelties consumed expensive imports, functioning as edible theater. These dishes were declarations of wealth and power as much as food.

Overall Temperament by Course

Hot Cold Moist Dry Astringent

Course / Stage	Overall Temperament	Why this net effect?
First Course	Hot Dry (+Moist from pottages)	Opens with mustard & preserved brawn (hot/dry stimulants), then warm/moist pottages; heavy meats appear early but are sauced. Net effect = warming/activating with a slight dry edge to “open the stomach.”
Second Course	Hot Dry (+ moderated by Moist entremets)	Heaviest roasts (venison, crane, peacock) are hot/dry at peak digestion; custards/jellies (entremets) punctuate to moisten/refresh. Net effect = the feast’s hottest/driest point, tempered between platters.
Third Course	Moist Cool (+ Astringent close)	Steps down with smaller birds and moist/cooling fish in jelly; baked quinces add astringency to begin closure; sage fritters give brief warmth without flipping the net trend.
Finale (Issue & Boute-hors)	Cool Dry → sealed by HotDry (hippocras)	Raw apples + caraway comfits = cool/dry & wind-dispelling; wafers are light/dry. Final seal with hippocras (hot/dry) “closes the stomach” and guards against putrefaction.

Show SCA stages with temperament

SCA Stage	Temperament	Notes
On Table / Entrance	HotDry	Mustard & brawn stimulate and announce status.
Pottages & Gentle Dishes	MoistWarm	Opens and soothes the stomach.
Great Roasts	HotDry	Peak heat/dryness; serve when digestion is strongest.
Entremets	MoistCool	Palate/digestion refreshers between roasts.
Lighter Birds & Fish	MoistCool	Step-down phase toward closure.
Dessert / Fruit	Astringent	Begins the “binding” close (quinces, etc.).
Issue	CoolDry	Raw apples + comfits; wafers light and crisp.
Boute-hors	HotDry	Hippocras seals the stomach.

Feast Planning with Russell’s Menu

For SCA feast planners, Russell’s feast maps neatly into modern service frameworks:

Downloadable Resources:

• Russell’s Feast Framework (Filled Example)
• Blank Feast Planning Template

Stage	Dishes from Russell’s Menu	Digestive Role
On Table / Entrance	Mustard & brawn	Stimulates appetite, prestige
Pottages	Pottage, blancmanger, jellies	Gentle starters, open stomach
Great Roasts	Beef, mutton, venison, swan, peacock, bustard, crane, etc.	Heaviest, driest meats; mid-digestion
Entremets	Custards, pastries, fritters, sotelties	Palate refreshers, visual allegories
Lighter Birds & Fish	Curlew, quail, perch in jelly, crayfish	Moist/cooling, easier to digest
Dessert / Fruit	Quinces baked, sage fritters	Astringent closure, sharpen digestion
Issue	Apples with caraway, wafers	Refresh and bind, dispel wind
Boute-hors	Hippocras	Spiced wine to seal digestion

Mythbusting Russell’s Feast

• “Feasts were chaotic.” ❌ They followed medical choreography.
• “Everyone ate the same food.” ❌ Hierarchy dictated portions.
• “Peacock and swan were delicacies.” ❌ They were tough; value lay in spectacle.
• “Sugar was common.” ❌ It was a costly luxury spice.
• “Fritters were desserts only.” ❌ They appear in every course as stimulants.
• “Fruit was always cooked.” ❌ The pippins at issue were raw, paired with comfits.

✅ Dos & ❌ Don’ts by Course

• First Course
  ✅ Pair heavy meats with moist dishes (pottage, sauce)
  ❌ Don’t open with multiple cold/moist foods — they dull appetite
• Second Course
  ✅ Interleave entremets between heavy roasts
  ❌ Don’t serve only hot/dry roasts back-to-back — digestion overload
• Third Course
  ✅ Use cooling/moist dishes (fish, almond cream) to “calm the stomach”
  ❌ Don’t drop in new hot/dry meats here — it reverses the descent
• Finale
  ✅ Always end with an astringent fruit + spiced closer
  ❌ Don’t pile sweets without balance — needs closure to “seal digestion”

Conclusion

Russell’s Dynere of Flesche shows that medieval dining was deliberate: humoral balance, digestive order, spectacle, and hierarchy all interlaced. What seems like excess was careful choreography. For modern readers—and especially SCA feast stewards—it offers both inspiration and a reminder: a medieval feast was an art of health and performance.

Why this matters today: Russell’s feast reminds us that medieval banquets were not chaotic indulgence, but carefully balanced systems of health, status, and art. It’s a reminder that food has always been about more than eating—it shapes identity, power, and performance at the table.

Glossary: a few terms

• Chawdron: rich sauce of entrails/offal.
• Entremets: “between-dishes” (light/spectacular interludes).
• Sotelty: edible allegory/sculpture, more for the eyes than the stomach.
• Issue de table: light closing bites after courses.
• Boute-hors: sendoff drink(s), e.g., hippocras.

Source: John Russell, Boke of Nurture, Harleian MS 4011, fol. 171 (c. 1460).

Further reading

• Flandrin & Montanari (eds.), Food: A Culinary History — feast structure.
• Hieatt & Butler (eds.), Curye on Inglysch — Middle English recipes.
• Adamson, Food in Medieval Times — ingredients, trade, status.

Medieval Spice Powders: Douce, Forte, and More

Originally published: November 10, 2015 — Updated: August 19, 2025 (cleaned up formatting, added headings, and clarified measurements).

Oftentimes when you’re recreating a period recipe, you’re met with ambiguous terms for flavoring. When I originally posted this, I focused on two commonly referenced powders—Powder Douce (sweet powder) and Powder Forte (strong powder). As I run across other receipts, I add them here. This is a working notebook, not a decree—and I’ll say when something is my interpretation.

A few house blends I keep on hand for medieval cooking projects.

📖 Jump to a Section

• Powder Douce (Sweet Powder)
• Powder Forte (Strong Powder)
• Fine Powder of Spices (Le Menagier de Paris, c. 1393)
• Common Sauce Spices, Amended (Libre del Coch, 1529)
• The Duke’s Powder, Amended (Libre del Coch)
• Blaunch Poudere (The Haven of Health)

Need spoon-to-ounce conversions? See the Spice Measurement FAQ.

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Powder Douce (Sweet Powder)

My working theory: Powder Douce wasn’t a single fixed formula but a family of mixes that leaned sweet, with sugar as the largest proportion, followed by cinnamon or ginger depending on what the cook had. That’s my belief, not gospel—please don’t quote it as settled fact.

My House Blend (3 : 2 : 1 : ½ idea)

• 1 tbsp sugar (refined white is fine; organic if you prefer)
• 1 ½ tsp ginger
• 1 ½ tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp mace
• ½ tsp cloves
• ½ tsp peppercorns

Sometimes I get cheeky and add a pinch of coriander.

Powder Forte (Strong Powder)

Powder Forte differs from Douce in that it’s pepper-forward. The version I use takes its cue from Robert May’s The Accomplisht Cook (1684) in the 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, coriander-seed finely beaten, or carraway-seed, cinamon an ounce fine beaten…

Note: a dry ounce is approximately 2 tablespoons. That original yields a lot of Powder Forte; I use a smaller everyday batch below.

My Everyday Forte

• 1 tbsp black peppercorns or a mix of peppercorns, long pepper, cubebs, and grains of paradise
• 1 tsp each: clove, nutmeg, coriander, cinnamon
• Salt to taste

Both Douce and Forte are versatile, appear frequently in period cookery, and pull their weight in modern kitchens too.

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Fine Powder of Spices (Le Menagier de Paris, c. 1393)

A set of instructions from Le Menagier de Paris for a “fine powder”:

FINE POWDER of spices. Take an ounce and a drachma of white ginger, a quarter-ounce of hand-picked cinnamon, half a quarter-ounce each of grains and cloves, and a quarter-ounce of rock sugar, and grind to powder.

Weights & measures, quick note: In this period the apothecaries’ pound was 12 ounces (not our 16). Systems varied by region. A drachma here is the weight measure (≈ 2 drams, ~52 grains). With that in mind, here’s my best US-measure interpretation.

Interpreted Recipe

• White ginger: 1 ounce + 1 drachma ≈ 10 drams ≈ ~2 ½ tbsp (~7 ½ tsp)
• Cinnamon (hand-picked): ~1 ½ tsp
• Grains of paradise: ~¾ tsp
• Cloves: ~¾ tsp
• Rock sugar: ~1 ½ tsp

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Common Sauce Spices, Amended (Libre del Coch, 1529)

Rupert de Nola’s Libre del Coch gives this note for “common sauce spices, amended” (roughly translated):

Cinnamon three parts; cloves two parts; one piece ginger; pepper a part; some dry coriander well ground; a little saffron; be all well ground and sifted.

Interpreted Recipe

• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp cloves
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp pepper
• ½ tsp dry coriander (ground)
• Pinch of saffron

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The Duke’s Powder, Amended (Libre del Coch)

Another powder from Libre del Coch (translated/modernized):

Cinnamon half an ounce, cloves half a quarter; and for the lords, do not lie down but only cinnamon; and sugar a pound if you want it sharp of flavor; and for passions of the stomach add a little ginger.

Interpreted Recipe

• Cinnamon, ½ ounce ≈ 1 tbsp
• Cloves, ⅛ ounce ≈ ¾ tsp
• Sugar, 1 pound (apothecaries’ 12-oz pound) ≈ ~1 ½ cups
• Ginger — “a little” ≈ ~1 tbsp

Mix and use as needed.

Note: A dry ounce ≈ 2 tbsp (≈ 1/8 cup).

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Blaunch Poudere (The Haven of Health)

My search for the elusive “blaunch poudere” landed on The Haven of Health by Thomas Cogan/Coghan (first ed. late 16th c.; a 1636 printing survives). In “CHAP: 126. Of Ginger” we find:

Ginger is hot in the second degree, and dry in the first… also with two ounces of sugar, a quarter of an ounce of ginger, & half a quarter of an ounce of Cinnamon, all beaten small into powder, you may make a very good blanch powder, to strow upon rosted apples, Quinces, or Wardens, or to sauce a hen. … green ginger or ginger condite… comforteth much the stomacke and head…

Interpreted Recipe

• Sugar, 2 ounces ≈ 4 tbsp
• Ginger, ¼ ounce ≈ ~1 ½ tsp
• Cinnamon, ⅛ ounce ≈ ~¾ tsp

This makes a very pale, sandy powder—just a shade lighter than the pólvora de duque/Duke’s Powder. If you use a light cassia, it reads even paler. Because Cogan calls it a “very good blanch powder,” I suspect this is the “white” powder referenced in Harleian MS 279.

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Working on substitutions for these spices? Visit the Spice Substitution Chart for historically sensible swaps.

📜 Sources & Notes

• Le Menagier de Paris (c. 1393) — “Fine Powder of Spices.”
• Rupert de Nola, Libre del Coch (1529) — “Common Sauce Spices,” “Duke’s Powder.”
• Robert May, The Accomplisht Cook (1684) — Bolonia Sausages (spice proportions that inform Forte).
• Thomas Cogan/Coghan, The Haven of Health (late 16th c.; 1636 ed.) — “Of Ginger” (blanch powder).

Translations here are working translations; any mistakes are mine. As always, adjust to taste and availability.