SC - trencher question (WAS: table manners)

[Woeller D]

> Date: Mon, 12 Jan 1998 14:21:21 -0500
> From: PETERSR at spiegel.becltd.com (Peters, Rise J.)
> Subject: Re: SC - Original nuns, monks and Priest
> 
> Someone asked: << Just out of curiosity, how many of the "early" folks are 
> still here? >>
> 
> Given the recent discussions about taking up "bandwidth" for off-topic chat, 
> do we really want to start a chorus of "oh yes, me too, I remember when"? 

You're right, of course. I do see this type of thing as less
problematical that some of the long, off-topic threads that are still
apparently going on, however.
> 
> Me, I'd like to talk about recipes...
> 
> For example, I made Saracen Bruet this weekend using burgundy for my "red 
> wine" and noticed two things:  first, the redaction I was using (Pleyn 
> Delit) says to cook until the liquid is mostly absorbed, and that just 
> didn't seem to be happening.  Second, the resulting sauce (after adding 
> almond milk and spices) was a rather unappetizing pinkish gray color.

If the problems you mention seem to be reasonably universal among
several people who've used the redaction in Pleyn Delit, have you
considered that perhaps Hieatt and Butler's redaction may need a little
fine tuning? As this type of secondary source goes, H & B are pretty
good, and in fact among the best, but not without the occasional
slip-up. For example, their inclusion of breadcrumbs in their redaction
for sambuccade, which is mentioned nowhere in the original. The original
says something about making a crust in a trap, IIRC (it's a pie, more or
less), and then goes on to talk about putting the filling into the
crust. It doesn't say to put crusts into the filling, which appears to
be their interpretation. Then, of course, there are their views on the
use of "pens" in the roasting of poultry: equally whimsical, but
probably pretty clear to most experienced cooks, medieval scholars or
no.

As has been said elsewhere, foods designated as being Saracen in nature
always seem to include almonds in some form, and are usually red or, or
more properly, mahagony in color. If you've ever used red sandalwood in
cooking, you've seen the color they're aiming at. Not a blazing red, but
more like the color of an unpainted, cedar pencil. Reddish beige, I
guess. This shouldn't be too hard to achieve.

Possible solutions to your problem might be to experiment with different
diameter pans. The ratio of exposed surface area to internal volume is
what controls how fast the liquid will evaporate. If you are having
problems with the liquid being "drunk up" by the meat, etc., you might
try a wider pan, like a deep skillet or casserole. Another possibility
is to cook the meat on a higher heat, stirring frequently, at a full
boil for at least some of the cooking process. Ordinarily modern
culinary "wisdom" advises against this, as it tends to make meat fall
apart into little strings, but it's possible that this may be
intentional in this case. Consider the precipes that call for the meat
to be teased apart into shreds. Think in terms of things like Ropa
Vieja, which is a Latino pot roast dish made this way, and served in
shreds that look like old rags, hence the name. 

In connection with the possibility for high-heat cooking, make sure to
get the meat good and brown before adding your red wine, etc. This will
help achieve a browner result. If you are using a good stewing cut like
chuck (which I would recommend over something more tender, because its
high connective tissue makes for a nicer texture in the finished sauce)
you should be able to get a really nice brown glaze over the meat, and
lining the pot, before adding the almond milk and other stuff. Obviously
there's a fine line between "good and brown" and burning. Essentially,
as I understand it, without looking at the recipe as I write, there are
three separate cooking processes: browning the meat, cooking it in wine,
and then cooking it again in almond milk, presumably for a shorter time.
The first two are pretty standard for almost any stew, except you need
to make sure the liquid is properly reduced, at more or less the same
time as the meat is mostly tender. The trick is in making it happen that
way. Then you add the almond milk and anything else that goes in at that
point, and finish cooking the meat while the almond milk cooks down a
bit, with the meat/wine glaze left over from the earlier cooking
process, turning into a somewhat thickish "cafe au lait"-colored sauce.
In other words, the color most medieval Europeans would think of in
connection with a Saracen's skin.    

> The taste was fine and it all disappeared into hungry feasters, but I still 
> feel like maybe something went wrong in the cooking process.

Cooking the dish in bulk at an event suggests to me you may have cooked
it in something like a big 40-quart stockpot. Too deep for the job, I'm
afraid. See the above maundering pontification for further info ;  ).

I suggest you look at a recipe for an Indian or Southeast Asian curry
that calls for coconut milk. That's probably pretty close to the
technique you need to use, the first cooking with wine, and the
different spices notwithstanding.

Adamantius
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