SC - Watermelon Pickles

[Jenn/Yana]

>Jadwiga Zajaczkowa said:
>> Actually, if you look at certain sources, pickled melon may have been
the only way
>> certain cultures ate melon in period. (Domostroi springs to mind.)
>
>THLord  Stefan li Rous replied:
>Upon what do you base this statement? Because only pickled melon is 
>mentioned in the Domeostroi? I find it hard to believe that they wouldn't
>have eaten some fresh melon when it was available. Because it probably
>doesn't keep very long, I can see where most melon they ate might have
>been pickled though. In this case, I think I'd want to see some medical
>writing or some such saying that fresh ones weren't good for you.

The Domostroi (Pouncy translation) doesn't _explicitly_ say that melons
were eaten fresh, but melons are mentioned a few times.

154:  "In summer melons, beans, carrots, cucumbers, and other fresh
vegetables make a nice change [from root vegetables and cabbage,
apparently]."  This seems to imply that melons were eaten "fresh", but we
don't know if any preparation was applied, like cooking or mashing, or
something.

165:  In a list of things to store in a cellar and/or icehouse, both melons
and melons in syrup are mentioned.  Looks like they figured out a way to
keep melons fresh longer.

The above references are SCA-period, the following mentions of melon are
likely just OOP.

199-200:  Recipes for watermelons.  One of watermelon puree "ripened" in an
alkaline solution, one made from the flesh cut into thin strips and
simmered in spices and honey syrup, and one cooked in a lime solution
before simmering in the above syrup.
Also, recipes for "melon", type not specified.  One of chunks of flesh
soaked in an alkaline solution, then soaked in a spiced honey-syrup, and
one a variant of this recipe, soaked in two changes of syrup and left until
the syrup evaporates, and then honey and spices are added.

202:  Melon and watermelon are mentioned in a list of sweets, along with
fruits in syrups and radish in honey.

>Unfortunately, we have very little in the way of Russian medieval
>sources. Does anyone know if any of those birch(?) bark writings have
>ever been published?

Yes, but not in English.  I haven't found any recipes mentioned in the
birch bark letters yet, but I'm always looking.

- --Yana