Durham Priory Manuscript

12th century sauce recipes from the Durham Priory manuscript 

Wulfric of Creigull 

Incipiunt diuersa genera pictauensium salsamentorum. Petrosilini et saluie succum cum aceto distemperatum cum pipere et allio \\ fortiter trito commisce. et cum his carnem sulcitam comede. 

• Here begin various kinds of Poitou condiments. Mix juice of parsley and sage which has been tempered with vinegar with finely ground pepper and garlic; and eat sausage with this. 

Ad minutos pisciculos coriandri et allii sucum cum pipere et allio// temperatum. 

• For tiny little fish: juice of coriander and garlic tempered with pepper and garlic. 

Ad agnos. piper cum acto temperatum. 

• For lambs: pepper tempered with vinegar. 

Ad arietes. de suco serpili. coriandri. retrosilini [recte petrosilini] costi saluie. satureie. abrotani. ysopi. et duobus foliis lauri. cum ac\e/ to distemperato. et bene colato. distempera piper et allium. 

• For rams: juice of creeping thyme, coriander, parsley, costmary, sage, savory, southernwood, hyssop, and two bay leaves, with vinegar that has been tempered and well strained. Mix pepper and garlic. 

Ad carnem uacciniam succum satureie cum aceto distemperato: cum pipere et allio misce. 

• For cow’s meat: mix juice of savory, with tempered vinegar, with pepper and garlic. 

Item ad id[d]em sucum racemorum colatum. cum allio \ pipere/ misce. 

• Again, for the same: mix strained juice of raisins with garlic and pepper. 

Ad pullos satureie sucum colatum cum aceto distemperatum coniunge. 

• To chickens, add strained juice of savory to tempered vinegar. 

Item ad carnem sulciatam. sucum petrosilini et acidum colatum. cum pipere misce. 

• Again, for sausage: mix parsley juice and strained vinegar with pepper. 

Ad anseres. piper et allium distempera cum acido carueris. cum uina [recte uino]. [alternative reading: recte carui agreste cumino.] 

• For ducks: temper pepper and garlic with vinegar and [if you] lack [vinegar] with wine. [alternative reading with vinegar, caraway and cumin.] 

Ad gallinam in hieme. allium. piper saluiam. cum aqua tepefacta. 

• For hen in winter: heat garlic, pepper and sage with warmed water. 

In quocumque tempore uolueris carne porcina. atque bouina cum sinapi. distempera acete utere. In omnibus supradictis. piper allio preualeat. 

• Whenever you want pork or beef with mustard, use it tempered with vinegar. In all the above, pepper should prevail over garlic. 

Practicum: 

Mix juice of parsley and sage which has been tempered with vinegar with finely ground pepper and garlic; and eat sausage with this. 

• 40 g parsley, stemmed and chopped 

• 6 g sage leaves 

• 6 g garlic, crushed 

• 1/8 tsp salt 

• 1/8 tsp pepper 

• 1 tsp vinegar 

Grind together the parsley and sage with 1/2 cup of water. Strain the mixture through fine cheesecloth. Mix the liquid with the salt, pepper, garlic, and vinegar. 

Compare to Curye IV (1390s) Green sauce, 200+ years later 

Verde sawse. Take persel, mynt, garlek, a litul serpell and sawge; a litul canel, ginger, piper, wnye, brede, vyneger & salt; grynde it small with safroun, & messe it forth. 

• Green sauce. Take parsley, mint, garlic, a little wild thyme and sage; a little cassia, ginger, pepper, wine, bread, vinegar & salt; grind it small with saffron, & serve it forth. 

Sources 

Gasper, Giles E. M., and Faith Wallis. “Salsamenta Pictavensium: Gastronomy and Medicine in Twelfth-Century England.” The English Historical Review, CXXXI, no. 553, 2017, doi:10.1093/ehr/cex373. 

Hieatt, Constance B., and Sharon Butler, eds. Curye on Inglisch: English Culinary Manuscripts of the Fourteenth Century. London: Published for the Early English Text Society by the Oxford UP, 1985. ISBN 0197224091. 

Background: 

• • The Durham manuscript was assembled in England in the second half of the 12th century. It was part of the medieval library of Durham Cathedral Priory. 

• • manuscript contains only ten food recipes – “salsamenta pictavensium”, or “sauces of the Poitevins”. Earliest currently known medieval sauce recipes. 

• • Why Poitou? Several other medical manuscripts cite “Poitevin sauces” – so apparently sauces were a known hallmark of their cuisine, especially with vinegar. Poitou was a rich duchy with a culture of feasting. 

• • “Salsamentum” classically, foods preserved by salting. But by 12th c. meant sauces in general. Hence why they go with sausage. 

• • Durham Priory had a large medical library as well as a “culture of food” despite religious rules. (Sauce recipes are explicitly culinary – recipes to enhance taste. Humour theory overlap with food. 

• • Compare #1 to Curye IV 144 (green sauce) – 1390s • Make in class using: red wine vinegar, alegar, cider vinegar (pomgar) 

• • Read the source material: “juice of raisins” is verjuice, not raisins ground and strained with water.