SC - Re: sca-cooks V1 #183

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Elizabeth of Dendermonde/Betty Cook wrote:

> There is a period Islamic dish (13th c. Andalusian) with a lot of vinegar
> in it which is supposed to keep several days; we have made a try or two at
> the dish and found it pretty good, but haven't tested the preservation.
> 
> The Dish Mukhallal
> Take the meat of a plump cow or sheep, cut it small, and put it in a new
> pot with salt, pepper, coriander, cumin, plenty of saffron, garlic peeled
> and diced, almonds peeled and split, and plenty of oil; cover it with
> strong, very pure vinegar, without the slightest bit of water; put it on a
> moderate charcoal fire and stir it, then boil it. When it cooks and the
> meat softens and it reduces, then put it on the hearthstone and coat it
> with much egg, cinnamon and lavender; color it with plenty of saffron, as
> desired, and put in it whole egg yolks and leave it on the hearthstone
> until it thickens and the broth evaporates and the fat appears. This dish
> lasts many days without changing or spoiling; it is called "wedding food"
> in the West [or the Algarve], and it is one of the seven dishes cited as
> used among us at banquets in Cordoba and Seville. (end of original)

In comparing this dish to curries, I'm interested in some of the
instructions that overlap with some modern curry recipes' instructions.
Specifically there is the mention of vinegar, which is found in numerous
curries (or else some other acid source like tamarind pulp). Also the
reference to cooking it until it reduces, and until the broth evaporates
and the fat appears. In most of the curries I've seen, the rule is to
cook it until the sauce is too thick, and has too little water in it, to
hold the fat in emulsion, so the oil "breaks" out of the sauce. 

As for the fact that it is topped with eggs, I can only suggest this
might be a period ancestor of moussaka, or at least related to one,
anyway. 

Why this should be regarded as a wedding dish, I couldn't say, unless
the idea is either that no cooking should be done on the wedding day
(with the entire household celebrating) or that it should be left for
the bride and groom to eat at their leisure over the next couple of
days. Anyone have any ideas about that aspect of it?

Adamantius