[Sca-cooks] Penguins and potatoes was medieval dog recipes

[Radei Drchevich]

First thing that came to mind after I read the "on a string" discription
was the peanut.

just a thought

joy

radei

  ----- Original Message -----
  From: "Terry Decker"
  To: gedney1 at iconn.net, "Cooks within the SCA"
  Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Penguins and potatoes was medieval dog
  recipes
  Date: Wed, 18 Jan 2006 08:30:22 -0600


  Let's dispel that idea with two quotes (lifted from Cindy Renfrow's
  website) from Gerard's Herbal:

  "Flos Solis Pyramidalis. Jerusalem Artichoke.
  These rootes are dressed in diuers waies; some boile them in water,
  and after stew them with sacke and butter, adding a little Ginger:
  others bake them in pies, putting Marrow, Dates, Ginger, Raisons of
  the Sun, Sacke, &c. Others some other way, as they are led by their
  skill in Cookerie. But in my iudgement, which way soeuer they be
  drest and eaten they stirre and cause a filthie loathsome stinking
  winde within the bodie, thereby causing the belly to bee pained and
  tormented, and are a meat more fit for swine, than men..."

  "Battata Virginiana, siue Virginianorum, & Pappus. Virginian
  Potatoes.
  The temperature and vertues be referred vnto the common [sweet]
  Potatoes, being likewise a food, as also a meate for pleasure,
  equall in goodnesse and wholesomenesse vnto the same, being either
  rosted in the embers, or boyled and eaten with oyle, vinegar, and
  pepper, or dressed any other way by the hand of some cunning in
  cookerie."



  While these quotes are from the 1633 edition of the Herbal, it is
  obvious Gerard knew the difference between the two plants, ergo
  Virginia Potatoes and Jerusalem Artichokes are two different
  critters.

  It is possible that the plant in question is a root the natives
  called Openauk, as described in Thomas Heriot's (or Hariot) "A
  briefe and true report of the new found land of Virginia..." (
  http://docsouth.unc.edu/nc/hariot/hariot.html ) as quoted here:

  " OPENAVK are a kind of roots of round forme, some of the
  bignes of walnuts, some far greater, which are found in moist &
  marish grounds growing many together one by another in ropes, or as
  thogh they were fastnened with a string. Being boiled or sodden
  they are very good meate."

  The other possibility put forth is they are potatoes from the sack
  of Cartagena.

  Gerard received his specimens in 1586 and his nomenclature ties the
  speciemens to Virginia. He either received them from a member of
  the fleet that had returned from its last stop in Virginia or he
  received them from someone who already had specimens they were
  working with. The former favors the white potato, but can not rule
  out the Openauk. The latter would almost certainly be an Openauk.

  In support of the Cartagena theory is the historical record of
  Drake's fleet. El Draco's Caribbean raid was with a fleet of over
  20 ships and 2400 men. By the time they reached Virginia, the
  fleet has in bad shape with over half of the men dead and many
  others sick. The colonists weren't doing well, so Drake
  consolidated his crews and gave the colonists the ships they needed
  to come home. Given the state of the colony, they probably didn't
  have much to resupply a vessel and most of the stores would have
  been what was left from Cartagena and St. Augustine (Florida), if
  any stores were siezed during their last raid.

  Solanum tuberosum from other sources were described by other
  naturalists over the next 15 years, so Gerard's Potatoes of
  Virginia are more curiosity than serious consideration. Since we
  haven't discovered any information about who and where he received
  the specimens from, all references to what they were and their
  place of origin is speculation and opinion. Being of a pyratical
  bent, I kinda like the Cartagena theory. Choose the one you like.
  The only requirement is it fit the facts and it be labelled
  speculation.

  Bear


  > I had always understood that the references to Virginia Potatoes
  > were to Jerusalem Artichokes...
  >
  > Capt Elias


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