[Sca-cooks] Hello, Intorducing myself

[David Friedman]

>  I hope to gain the knowledge to keep my meals "period" correct. I 
>'m looking forward to researching the resources listed, recipe, etc. 
>I hav already been asked to provide the feast at a large gathering 
>next may and they want me to bring my competition BBQ to recreate a 
>period version of turducken but to continue stuffing up to a hog. 
>What I have so far is the hog stuffed with a small lamb stuffed with 
>the turkey, duck and chicken. I have calculated cooking time will be 
>36 to 48 hours at 275 modern degrees F. My first questions are: Is 
>there record of the recipe for this dish and what
>  is it called. Was there some sort of stuffing in between each layer 
>of meat or  was this just like a big meat roll?

I assume you realize that turkeys are from the New World, so only 
show up in European cooking at the very end of period. I've seen 
references to dishes with one animal inside another in period, but I 
have no reason to think that one of the animals would be a turkey.

Here is one such recipe, from a 13th c. Andalusian cookbook:

Roast Calf, which was made for the Sayyid Abu al-'Ala in Ceuta

Take a young, plump lamb, skinned and cleaned. Make a narrow opening 
between the thighs and carefully take out everything inside of it of 
its entrails. Then put in the interior a roasted goose and into its 
belly a roasted hen and in the belly of the hen a roasted pigeon and 
in the belly of the pigeon a roasted starling and in the belly of 
this a small bird, roasted or fried, all this roasted and greased 
with the sauce described for roasting. Sew up this opening and place 
the ram in a hot tannur and leave it until it is done and browned. 
Paint it with that sauce and then place it in the body cavity of a 
calf which has been prepared clean; sew it up and place it in the hot 
tannur and leave it until it is done and browned; then take it out 
and present it.

About dutch ovens, you write:

"The Spanish also have used them since "the dawn of time" and called 
them  "marmetta" roughtly translated "tripod pot" meaning they had 3 
legs forming the tripod in which to put the fire under the pot. "

A lot of us are suspicious of "since the dawn of time" traditions. 
Are there period paintings showing these? archaeological evidence? 
What would they be made of? Modern dutch ovens are cast iron, which I 
don't think is a common material for cooking pots until relatively 
late in our period.

And what were the Chinese pots you mention  made of?
-- 
David/Cariadoc
www.daviddfriedman.com