SC - Re: historical liver

[lilinah at earthlink.net]

>As far as I can tell, the Spanish corpus
>>uses the livers of most edible creatures.  There are a lot of recipes
>>for roast fowl which use the bird's liver in a sauce.
>
>The technique still survives in modern Catalan cooking.  Liver and 
>nuts are ground into a paste, thinned with broth or wine or water, 
>and then added to the sauce both as a thickener and a flavoring 
>agent.  The technique is called "picada", and can also include 
>breadcrumbs, herbs and spices, peppers and chocolate, depending on 
>the sauce.  De Nola uses the technique over and over again, but does 
>not give it a name.
>
>Vicente
>
>(who dreams of partridge cooked in a sauce of hazelnuts and bitter 
>chocolate.  OOP, but oh so good!)

Not so different from Philippino dinaguan, where meat is cooked with 
seasonings, like garlic and vinegar, in liquid (water) that is 
thickened with blood and mashed liver. Other internal organs are 
added as well.

And not all that different from Indonesian Batak (from North Sumatra) 
saksang. They made this for me in the village on Lake Samosir. I saw 
most of the process. First you catch your pig - they just wander 
around, and you do want to get your pig and not a neighbor's. Slit 
its throat and SAVE the blood. Then you built a fire and singe off 
all the long coarse black hair, well you try to do this... Then you 
gut it, saving most of the guts. Then you skin it, saving most of the 
skin. Then you chop up the meat, chop up the skin, chop up the guts 
and put it all in a big pot with lots of water on an open fire. This 
is seasoned with a variety of spices. This includes pan toasted 
andalimon (pronounced AHD-'-dah-lee-moan) which looked and tasted 
like Szechuan pepper. Also grated coconut meat that has been toasted 
in a wok until it is lightly golden and then ground into a puree. 
Once the meat is tender and it's almost ready to serve, add the blood 
that you've been saving which has had some citrus juice squeezed into 
it to help preserve it, and which also curdles it. Cook until the 
sauce is thick and serve. Eat for at least two meals every day for a 
week, because other people will be bringing you pots of saksang as 
well.

Anahita al-shazhiyya
it was an honor and i was honored, but rubbery chewy pig skin with 
bits of coarse black hair still attached isn't my favorite food.