[Sca-cooks] Salt and pepper

[jenne at fiedlerfamily.net]

> I'm basing my opinion on the absence of evidence- in
> short the lack of mentions of the ingredient, black
> pepper, in the MA manuscripts which I have available.

All right, I'll dig this up. One mention I know of involved 2 priests and
their household (no more than 2-4 servants) using a POUND of pepper in a
year.

> Modern recipes almost all specify "salt and pepper to
> taste" (except for sweet things), but very few of the
> medieval ones do- there are a couple which will say to
> add enough salt, but frequently the pepper taste is
> supplied by cubebs, long pepper, grains of paradise,
> etc. when wanted.

Discussion on this list has pointed out, I believe, several sources which
tell you to use salt to taste. I will certainly go home and consult my
recipes and make a list of those that use pepper.

> And, I learned to reduce salt extremely from what most
> people seem to use because I was cooking for people
> whose Drs had told them to minimize salt as part of
> their health care.

I notice that reduced salt consumption does not seem to have been part
of  the medieval physician's repetoire of treatments, but I'll look
further.

> > Not to mention
> > the fact that foods prepared from fresh by modern
> > people don't use
> > anywhere near the amount of salt that our
> > pre-prepared foods do.
> Again, my experience seems to differ from yours.

Wow. Your friends must use tablespoon measures to pre-season their food
when it is made from fresh ingredients. Or do they just use prepackaged
ingredients?

> > > reflecting the fact that folk above the salt were
> > > grand enough to be given the luxury of extra salt
> > if
> > > they wanted it- it was too expensive to be given
> > out
> > > to mere servants, other than what might be already
> > in
> > > their food.
> > Documentation for this statement? I have never heard
> > that salt was not
> > available.
> Don't think I said it was unavailable, merely
> expensive.

Not available at table, I mean, to those who are not high nobility.

>And I have no doubt that, like anything
> else, the price varied depending on your location and
> time period, and such things as how close the ocean or
> the salt mines were, and how frequently traders came
> through with it.

Salt was certainly a major industry.

> OK, you explain the usage of the phrase "above the
> salt", as well as the little salt bowl and spoon which
> was passed amongst the nobler feasters.

The nef? The salt bowls were placed on each table. However, obviously the
more important feasters would have a nicer salt dish, which may be the
origin?