[Sca-cooks] Cilantro Potaje

[Robin Carroll-Mann]

I sent a long and detailed reply to the list last night, and it never appeared.  Here is a briefer version.

I have never redacted this recipe, but my educated guess is that it is supposed to be much more liquid -- a nut-milk seasoned with herbs.  I base this on the following points:

1. The verb used in the recipe is "cozer" (to cook).  This verb can mean cooking in general, but it also means boiling or cooking in liquid.  A "cocido" is a boiled dish.

2. It's to be cooked until it thickens a little.  A nut-paste really can't thicken noticeably, but nut-milks do thicken when heated.

3. The dish is a "potaje".  The earliest definitions of this word say that it is "the broth of the pot, or other liquid foodstuffs".  The derivation is from the Latin "potare" (drink).

4. It is common for medieval recipes to omit essential but well-known steps.  I think, based on the information above, that a medieval cook would understand that the ground almonds and hazelnuts are to be drawn up with a liquid.

I would recommend using either chicken broth, as in the next recipe (for hazelnut pottage), or salted water (for a Lenten/vegetarian version).

Just my two maravedis,
Brighid ni Chiarain