[Sca-cooks] Period Fish/Food Question (Gasp!)

[Phil Troy/ G. Tacitus Adamantius]

Also sprach Barbara Benson:
>OK,
>
>All this talk of fishies has provoked me to inquire into a dish that
>I had all but given up on attempting.
>
>From TFCC:
>xxxviij. Storion in brothe.--Take fayre Freysshe Storgeoun, an
>choppe it in fayre water; (th)anne take it fro (th)e
>fyre, an strayne (th)e brothe (th)orw a straynoure in-to a potte, an
>pyke clene (th)e Fysshe, an caste (th)er to powder
>Pepir, Clowes, Maces, Canel; & (th)anne take fayre Brede, and stepe
>it in (th)e same lycowre, & caste (th)er-to, an let
>boyle to-gederys, & caste (th)en Safroun (th)er-to, Gyngere, an
>Salt, & Vynegre, & (th)anne serue it forth ynne.(Note:
>i.e. into the dining-room. ).
>
>Now, not knowing much about fishies except that I like to eat the
>less fishy tasting ones I thought this might be a way
>to sneak fish into my upcoming sideboardy-thingie. Much to my
>suprise I discover that Sturgeon is realllllllly
>expensive.

Some species are endangered, and even those that aren't endangered
are not hugely abundant. Unless somebody is farming the critters, why
would it not be expensive? There's a reason why real caviar costs
what it does.

Hmmm. New Year's Eve... Blini... sour cream... caviar...

>  So, my question, is if there is a fish that I could readily aquire
>for less money that would be an acceptable
>substitution?

Strange as it may sound, fresh sturgeon is not unlike fresh shark,
which is significantly cheaper, but not necessarily much easier to
find in some parts of the country. Unlike a lot of other fish, shark
(and also sturgeon) need to be cooked for a relatively long time, or
they can be tough.

You might want to rethink this as a sideboard item, though, unless
there's a way to keep it warm. Bread-thickened sauces, when cool, can
become a little on the glutinous side.

Adamantius