[Sca-cooks] Game for Your Feast

[Stefan li Rous]

Henry of Maldon gave some wonderful info about game at SCA feasts and at period feasts. 

I do have one quibble with his quibble, though.

<<< BTW, one little quibble: I doubt that turkey was served in the middle
ages. Maybe in the Renaissance, certainly thereafter, but I think not
before. >>>

Renaissance at least, since it is a New World bird. However, there is/was a large European bird known as a bussard, note the "ss" not "zz". that was eaten. It wasn't the American scavenger bird with the 'zz's.  This is one reason that the turkey was accepted fairly quickly since it was replacing something that the Europeans were already familiar with. 

I think it is reasonable to serve a modern turkey if you cook it as they would have a bussard or other large bird. Some, swan?, might taste a bit different to do this for, though. But that may principally be the difference between a water fowl and a land bird.

A bit more on turkeys.

turkeys-msg (76K) 1/16/08 Use of turkeys in Renaissance Europe.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/FOOD-MEATS/turkeys-msg.html

Turkeys-a-GB-art (6K) 12/14/05 "On Turkeys and Great Birds" by Johnnae llyn Lewis.
http://www.florilegium.org/files/FOOD-MEATS/Turkeys-a-GB-art.html

Stefan

--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
   Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas          StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****