SC - re: Seafood Sources

[Mordonna22@aol.com]

Mordonna22 at aol.com wrote:
> 
> Master Huen, in your redaction of the Waffres recipe from Thomas Austin's Two
> Fifteenth Century Cookery Books from
> <A HREF="http://www.labs.net/dmccormick/huen/huenrec/hrec43.htm"> </A>A
> <A HREF="http://www.labs.net/dmccormick/huen.htm"> Boke of Gode Cookery</A>
> you substitute "the womb of a luce" with chicken egg yolks.  I suppose this is
> an acceptable substitution, if you assume the original meant the roe of a
> luce.  Even so, though, wouldn't fish roe be much more like the original than
> chicken eggs?  Seems to me there would be a vast difference in taste.  I've
> eaten pike and carp roe, and caviar.  All have a delightfully strong "fish"
> taste not found in chicken eggs.
> 
> Mordonna DuBois

Greetings Mordonna,
   You're right of course that egg yolk doesn't taste like "fish;" in
this case, though, I wasn't looking for a taste substitute. I was just
trying to come up with a basic waffer recipe, and left the "womb of a
luce" out of my redaction for several reasons, the primary being that I
felt I couldn't find the product or an approproate substitute. I made
the recipe the first time without a womb or egg yolks, and wasn't happy
with the results. Adding the egg yolks seemed to make a more substantial
waffer. (And didn't leave me with leftover egg yolk.)
   Also it seemed to me that this was a "fish day" recipe, as waffers
didn't routinely contain fish, and the egg yolk may have been left out
for that reason. I attempted to make it a "meat day" item, without the
fish but with the yolk.
   I've never made it with fish - I have no idea what would be an
appropraite substitute for the womb of a luce. Cavier? And could I find
a womb on my own without having to find a whole uncleaned pike? And do
you have any idea as to what this may taste like?
   I'd be very interested to hear your opininons, Mordonna and
Adamantius!

Thanks for your letter Mordonna,
Huen
- -- 
A Boke of Gode Cookery
http://www.labs.net/dmccormick/huen.htm
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