[Sca-cooks] Mustard

[Barbara Benson]

> Gunthar> But, and I don't have a source with me, wasn't mustard often
> on the table as a condiment? Sounds like such a case to me. "These
> french fries are good, but better with some ketchup. Or, more
> to my mind, I like mustard with corned beef but add it after the cooking
> process instead of during. Now, the recipe doesn't state to add mustard
> but neither do most modern recipes when discussing condiments
> that can be used.

Greetings,

I believe that the reason the mustard was frequently found on the
table instead of in the recipe was (as Bear mentioned) a humoral
issue. Mustard is a VERY hot spice and would not be appropriate to
many diners based on the humoral theory. So it was served on the side
so that those who desired it, and knew that it would not upset their
balance, could add it.

I believe that you have helped to further illustrate Bear's point.
There might be a good reason why the dish did not include mustard (to
the medieval mind). For a modern parallel consider salt. We have come
to realize that salt can cause some major problems with people who
have elevated blood pressure (their humor is unbalanced). By choosing
to scale back the amount of salt in the dish you can create something
that all of the diners can enjoy - provided that there are salt
shakers placed on the tables for those for whom blood pressure is not
an issue (whose humors are balanced).

Glad Tidings,
--
Serena da Riva