Kitchen Adventures – Sekanjabin (Persian Mint Drink)

Sekanjabin is another popular drink that can be found at events. It is simple and easy to make. This is another recipe from "An Anonymous Andalusian cookbook of the 13th Century" as translated by David Friedman.

Syrup of Simple Sikanjabîn (Oxymel)

Take a ratl of strong vinegar and mix it with two ratls of sugar, and cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an ûqiya of this with three of hot water when fasting: it is beneficial for fevers of jaundice, and calms jaundice and cuts the thirst, since sikanjabîn syrup is beneficial in phlegmatic fevers: make it with six ûqiyas of sour vinegar for a ratl of honey and it is admirable.

...[gap: top third of this page has been cut off]...

... and a ratl of sugar; cook all this until it takes the consistency of syrup. Its benefit is to relax the bowels and cut the thirst and vomiting, and it is beneficial in bilious fevers (Friedman, 2000).

Sekanjabin Recipe (Courtesy of David Friedman)

Dissolve 4 cups sugar in 2 1/2 cups of water; when it comes to a boil add 1 cup wine vinegar. Simmer 1/2 hour. Add a handful of mint, remove from fire, let cool. Dilute the resulting syrup to taste with ice water (5 to 10 parts water to 1 part syrup). The syrup stores without refrigeration.

Sekanjabin refers to the "family" of drinks made with vinegar, sugar and water (Meade, 2002).  I prefer to use red wine vinegar as the base of my drink.  I have also used flavored vinegars and omitted the mint.  I prefer a stronger drink, so I usually dilute 5:1 ratio of water to syrup.  

Works Cited 

Friedman, D. (2000, September 4). Chapter One: On Drinks. Retrieved 14 2015, September, from An Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook of the 13th Century: http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/Cookbooks/Andalusian/andalusian10.htm#Heading506

Meade, R. H. (2002, October 25). Non-Alcoholic Beverages of the Middle Ages. Retrieved September 14, 2015, from Medieval Brewers Homepage: http://mbhp.forgottensea.org/noalcohol.html#_ftnref5

Kitchen Adventures – Spiced Pomegranite Drink (Spiced Pomegranate Syrup)

Ale, beer, mead and wine were very popular beverages in the middle ages, but most sites are dry or semi dry, or for personal reasons, folks will choose not to drink alcoholic beverages. There are several different drinks that I turn to that are documentable to within period in the SCA. These have gone over very well at banquets I have served in the past.

I will start with one of the more popular beverages, spiced pomegranate drink. This drink is easy to make and very refreshing. This is very similar to Grenadine syrup, but please don't buy the commercial product when this drink is so easy to make.

Syrup of Pomegranates 

Take a ratl of sour pomegranates and another of sweet pomegranates, and add their juice to two ratles of sugar, cook all this until it takes the consistency of syrup, and keep until needed. Its benefits: it is useful for fevers, and cuts the thirst, it benefits bilious fevers and lightens the body gently (Friedman, 2000).

Recipe

1 quart pomegranate juice
4 cups of sugar
1-2 cinnamon sticks*
Up to a tablespoon of cloves*

**One of the recipes I located while researching (Non Alcoholic Beverages of the Middle Ages by HL Ronan Meade) suggested the addition of cinnamon and or clove as well as other "warmed spices". 

As the recipe from Al-Andulus suggests, equal parts of juice to sugar, heated until it boils and then lower the heat and cook until it becomes thick syrup. I dilute my syrup with a 4:1 ratio of water to syrup.

 This syrup can be kept nonrefridgerated and prepared in advanced. 

Works Cited

Friedman, D. (2000, September 4). Chapter One: On Drinks. Retrieved 14 2015, September, from An Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook of the 13th Century: http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/Cookbooks/Andalusian/andalusian10.htm#Heading506

Meade, R. H. (2002, October 25). Non-Alcoholic Beverages of the Middle Ages. Retrieved September 14, 2015, from Medieval Brewers Homepage: http://mbhp.forgottensea.org/noalcohol.html#_ftnref5

Kitchen Adventures – Wine Braised Beef (1615) (To Stew Fillets of Beefe)

In June, I hosted a cook's gathering featuring a selection of dishes that would have been found on "Shakespeare's" table. Each of the cook's that attended chose a dish from the recipes presented and brought it with them. We dined that night on buttered eggs, french bread, stewed fillets of beef, Fridayes pye and a berry cream.

The beef was delicious, tender, and served over a bed of saffroned rice. I cooked it in a crock pot. It recieved rave reviews. I don't cook with salt or pepper if I can avoid it, so the major comment of the evening were that this dish would have been better if I had added some salt and pepper while cooking. Note to self: Add Salt and Pepper!

To stew Fillets of Beefe

Take a rawe fillet of beefe and cut it in thin slices halfe as broad as your hand and fry them till they bee halfe fried in a frying-panne with sweete butter uppon each side with a soaft fire, then powre them into a dish or pipkin putting in a pint of claret-wine, a faggot of sweet herbes, and two or three blades of whole mace, a little salt, the meate of a Lemon cut in slices, then stewe these all together very softly for the space of two or three houres till it be halfe boyled away, then dish it up on sippets and throwe salt upon it, and serve it to the table hot  John Murrell "A Booke of Cookerie" (Lorwin, 1976).

Interpreted Recipe

2 to 3 pounds beef chuck shoulder roast (aka pot roast), sliced into ¼ inch thick slices

2 Tbsp. butter

2 cups red wine (preferably a Bordeaux which is another name for “claret”)

8 sprigs fresh thyme

1 sprig fresh rosemary

1-2 Tbsp. parsley

2 bay leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

1/8 tsp mace

1 lemon, peeled, sliced

Beef prepared to be stewed

Fry the slices of beef in the butter (if you wish, add olive oil to keep butter from burning). Remove from the pan until the all of the meat has been cooked thoroughly. Add meat back into the pan and add remaining ingredients. Allow meat to simmer two to three hours, or until liquid has been reduced by half and meat is tender.


I have included some pictures of the product in process, but silly me! I forgot to take a picture of the finished product. This was a huge hit at the gathering and I will be making it again in the future for an event. Probably 12th Night in January.

Kitchen Adventures – Dent-de-lion- The Dandelion (Buttered Wortes (Buttered Greens) & Joutes (Braised Spring Greens with Bacon))

Dent-de-lion: The Dandelion in Medieval Cuisine

“What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.”
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Family: Asteraceae
Usage: Culinary, Medicinal

Whether known as blowball, lion's tooth, cankerwort, or wild endive, the dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) has long been prized for both its culinary and medicinal virtues. References to its use appear in Arabic, Greek, Welsh, and French sources. Europeans brought dandelions to North America deliberately—likely as early as the Pilgrims—for use as a potherb and bee forage.

Historical texts show the dandelion’s importance across centuries:

• 1562 – Bullein’s Bulwarke: Dandelions mixed with roses and vinegar helped cool the head and purged excess heat.
• 1587 – The Good Husvvifes Iewell: Included dandelion roots in a tonic for tissick (lung ailments).
• 1629 – Parkinson’s Paradisi in Sole: Notes the dandelion’s use in compound medicines for cleansing the blood and easing liver complaints.

Medieval people consumed a far wider variety of greens than we do today. Dandelion leaves appeared in salads and cooked greens, and the yellow flowers may have served as a natural coloring agent.

Buttered Wortes (Harleian MS. 279)

Original Recipe: “Take al maner of good herbes that thou may gete... putte hem on fire with faire water; put þer-to clarefied buttur a grete quantite. Whan thei ben boyled ynogh, salt hem... Dise brede small in disshes, and powr on the wortes, and serue hem forth.”

 Interpreted Recipe (Serves 8)

• 8 cups assorted greens (including dandelion, spinach, beet greens, kale)
• Several sprigs of fresh herbs (e.g., thyme, parsley, mint)
• 2 tbsp clarified butter
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 thick slices of bread, cubed

Boil greens and herbs for 5–10 minutes. Drain and press out water. Chop finely. Return to pot, add butter and salt, and heat through. Serve over cubed bread or vice versa.

Bonus Recipe: Joutes – Braised Spring Greens with Bacon

See also: Harleian MS 279 Joutes (~1430)

References & Resources

• Austin, T. Two fifteenth-century cookery-books. Harleian MS. 279 (ab. 1430)
• Beard, J. (1981). Beard on Food: Dandelions Left Home to Make Good. Los Angeles Times, K38.
• The Booke of Simples, 1562. Bulleins Bulwarke.
• The Good Husvvifes Iewell, 1587.
• Parkinson, J. (1629). Paradisi in Sole Paradisus Terrestris.
• Rubel, W. (2015). The History of the Garden Dandelion. williamrubel.com
• Ombrello, T. Dandelion, Plant of the Week, UCC Biology Dept.

⚠️ Reminder:

Always harvest dandelions from areas that are free from pesticides and herbicides. For food safety, ensure flowers and greens are from clean, untreated sources.

Originally published 5/22/2015. Updated with new historical references and interpretation on 7/3/2025.