Italian Renaissance Spit Roasted Beef made with Salted Brisket & Served with Sweet Mustard Sauce from Scappi

Animal detail from medieval illuminated manuscript, British Library Harley MS 3244, 1236-c 1250, f47r

Arrosta — the grand roast course of a Renaissance feast — was far more than just meat on a spit. In Bartolomeo Scappi’s Opera (1570), the arrosta included an impressive variety: spit-roasted meats, braised vegetables, elegant sauces, pasta, and even colorful jellies. This was the third course of our 12th Night 2024 feast, following the Alesso course. It showcased the depth of Italian Renaissance cooking, balancing hearty dishes with refined accompaniments.

For this feast, we adapted Scappi’s recipes for a modern feast kitchen, using brisket in place of a full rack of beef ribs, seasonal vegetables, and accessible modern cooking methods — without losing the rich flavors of the originals.

Historical Context: The Arrosta in Renaissance Dining

Bartolomeo Scappi, personal chef to several Popes, published his monumental cookbook in 1570. His work captures both grand courtly dining and practical Lenten fare. The arrosta course was often the centerpiece of a meal, designed to impress guests with skill, abundance, and variety. Alongside the expected roasts, Scappi included vegetable dishes, pasta, and desserts, showing the Renaissance love for balanced and abundant tables.

In Renaissance banquet tradition, the arrosta — literally “roast” — was more than a single dish. It was a set course, positioned after the boiled meats (al lesso) and before the final sweets, and served as a showcase for the host’s wealth, skill, and access to prime ingredients. In Italian and broader European practice, this course could include not only spit-roasted meats, but also fried, grilled, and baked dishes, as well as richly sauced accompaniments.

Theory of Digestion and Humoral Balance

The Renaissance kitchen did not operate solely on taste — it was deeply influenced by the Galenic theory of digestion. According to this model, digestion happened in stages, with foods progressing from lighter and moister to heavier and drier as the meal went on. Roasted meats were considered among the “drier” preparations, especially when spit-roasted over open flame, which was thought to reduce their innate moisture. Without correction, such dishes were believed to tax the body and cause imbalance in the humors, particularly in those of “dry” constitution.

To make these roasts more healthful and digestible, period cooks paired them with moistening sauces — sweet, tart, or spiced — that counterbalanced dryness. This is why Renaissance cookbooks, including Bartolomeo Scappi’s monumental Opera (1570), often present roast recipes alongside multiple sauce preparations. In our feast, this principle is reflected in the Salsa di Mostardo amabile (sweet mustard sauce) and the walnut-garlic sauce served with the beef.

Variety Within the Roast Course

While the name suggests a single cooking method, the arrosta could include:

• Spit-roasted meats — large joints of beef, lamb, game birds.
• Grilled dishes — chops, skewers, or offal.
• Fried items — fritters, pastries, and delicate morsels.
• Baked pies and pasties — often with meat or cheese fillings.

This variety allowed the cook to display mastery over multiple techniques while still keeping within the course’s “dry” category in humoral terms.

Salting as a Preservation Technique

Our beef for this course followed a process rooted in Renaissance preservation methods. Salting was one of the most important means of keeping meat edible beyond the immediate slaughtering period, especially before reliable cold storage. Coarse salt (often mixed with aromatics like fennel, coriander, or garlic) was rubbed into meat to draw out moisture through osmosis, inhibiting bacterial growth. In larger households and urban kitchens, salted meats allowed for advance preparation and easier provisioning — vital for feast service where dozens or even hundreds of guests might be served.

In Scappi’s recipes, salting could be brief — just hours — for seasoning and texture, or extended over several days for preservation. The salted pressed beef method we adapted for our brisket echoes both preservation and seasoning traditions, ensuring flavorful meat that holds its structure through long, slow cooking. In feast context, the ability to produce such meat out of season or far from slaughter was a mark of logistical skill and kitchen sophistication.

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Menu

1. Per arrostire allo spiedo un carré di costolette di manzo – To spit-roast a rack of beef ribs (Brisket substitution) 
2. Per brasare le cipolle intere in quaresima – To braise whole onions in Lent 
3. Salsa di noci e aglio – Walnut and Garlic Sauce 
4. Salsa di Mostardo amabile – Sweet Mustard Sauce 
5. Per far diverse minestre di zucche Turchesche – Turkish Squash 
6. Tortelletti d’herba alla Lombarda – Herb tortellini in the Lombard Style 
7. Gelo in bocconcini di piu colori piatti – Jelly in small bites, of many colors