[Sca-cooks] galangale

[Chris Stanifer]

--- "Mark S. Harris" <MarkSHarris at austin.rr.com> wrote:
> Maybe. But where would anyone find fresh galangale? At least in the 
> U.S.? 


Try an Asian market.  I can find fresh Galangal at an Asia market here in Bakersfield, so I know
it must be available in real cities.


> But more importantly, if you are doing re-creations of medieval dishes, 
> would using fresh galangale be accurate, even if it does taste better? 
> Would the galangale available in medieval Europe be fresh? I don't 
> think it would be, even when such goods started being carried directly 
> to Europe by ship.


I don't know of any European recipes which call for galangal to begin with, so I can't say for
certain whether the stuff is fresh or dried.  However, galangal, like ginger, lasts a good long
time if it is not exposed to air, so I don't see why it wouldn't be available fresh in period.  If
fresh ginger was available, there's no reason to think that fresh galangal wouldn't be available,
too.  That is, if it was used enough in Europe to be worth importing.  I know it was used in the
arabic and asian worlds at the time.

WdG







Through teeth of sharks, the Autumn barks.....and Winter squarely bites me.


	
		
__________________________________ 
Celebrate Yahoo!'s 10th Birthday! 
Yahoo! Netrospective: 100 Moments of the Web 
http://birthday.yahoo.com/netrospective/