All the King's Cooks (23 page)

1.
 
Chop the onions, oatmeal and herbs very finely together.

2.
 
Put the herb mixture into a deep saucepan half full of water, bring it to a rapid boil, stirring all the time, then put in the meat, ensuring that it is covered with the liquid.

3.
 
Reduce the heat to a very gentle simmer, skim off the scum without removing the herbs, and leave to cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Stir in the oatmeal after 1½ hours,

4.
 
Just before serving the pottage – as a soup – stir in the salt. Then serve the boiled meat in a separate dish.

POTTAGE WITH WHOLE HERBS
³

1.
 
Half fill a large cooking pot with water, bring it to the boil, plunge in the meat, and remove the scum as it rises. Then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer.

2.
 
Mix the oatmeal with 275ml (½ pt) cold water, and stir it into the pot.

3.
 
Add the vegetables, and continue simmering for 1½ hours, until the meat is tender. Then add the salt and wine vinegar.

4.
 
Lift the meat out on to a dish, lift out the vegetables with a skimmer, lay them on top, and decorate the edges with the pieces of bread. Then keep warm until the remaining stock has been served first as a pottage.

GRUEL OF FORCE
⁴

1
 
Sprinkle the oatmeal into the stock in a pan, bring to the boil and simmer while stirring for about 30 minutes until completely cooked.

Ground the pork to a smooth paste, stir in with the salt and cook for a further 5 minutes before serving.

Meat Day First Course Dishes

VENISON IN BROTH
⁵

1
 
Place all the ingredients in a pan with sufficient water to cover, simmer for 2 hours then dish the venison in its own stock.

2
 
Serve with the Frumenty (next recipe) in a separate dish.

FRUMENTY
⁶

1.
 
Bruise the wheat in a pestle and mortar, then put it into a pan, scald it with hot water, and leave it in a cool place to soak for 1–2 days.

2.
 
Add more water to the wheat, so that the pan contains three times its volume of water, and leave in a warm oven or on a very gentle heat for at least a day to swell and cook. Then leave it to cool overnight.

3.
 
Blend the almonds with the stock and strain it to make almond milk. Beat it with the egg yolks and saffron, and then beat this into the wheat.

4.
 
Heat the wheat almost to boiling, and serve in a deep dish. If you are using pearl barley as a substitute for wheat, you need to simmer it in water for only about 45 minutes before proceeding from stage 3.

BRAWN
⁷

1.
 
Put the wine, spices and bay leaves into a deep pan, add 575ml (1 pt) water, and bring to the boil.

2.
 
Put in the meat, skim it once it has returned to the boil, then simmer very gently for about 2 hours until tender.

3. Dissolve the salt in 1.7l (3pts) water. When the meat has cooked, put it into this cold brine and leave it in a cool place until it is to be served – within the next two or three days – then lift out, drain and slice.

Alternatively, use strong ale instead of the wine and spices, and proceed as above.

The stock left over after the meat has cooked may be made into a good pottage by stirring in 30ml (2 tbs) medium oatmeal, 5ml (1 tsp) dried sage or thyme, all mixed with a little cold water, and two coarsely sliced English onions. Simmer it for 40–45 minutes, then add salt and pepper to taste just before serving.

SERGEANT OF THE KING’S MEAT STEW
⁸

1.
 
Place all the ingredients, except the bread, into a pan and simmer for 2½–3 hours, stirring very occasionally. Arrange the bread on the bottom of a deep dish, and pour the stew on top just before serving.

SERGEANT OF THE KING’S ALLOES OF BEEF
(BEEF OLIVES)
⁹

1.
 
Lightly beat the steaks, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

2.
 
Mix together the onion, herbs and suet, spread this over the
steaks, roll them up, then tie them securely with thin string.

3.
 
For spit-roasting, the strings at the ends of the rolls may be tied to the spits. For oven baking, each roll can be threaded on to a skewer supported across a baking tin, and cooked at 170°C (325°F, gas mark 3) for about 40 minutes. Then cut off the strings and serve.

TO BOIL A LEG OF MUTTON
¹⁰

1.
 
Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (350°F, gas mark 4).

2.
 
Put the meat in a roasting tin and bake for 15 minutes. Remove it from the oven, put a metal plate on top, press it down as hard as possible, then slash the meat with a knife and press again. Pour the juices into a small saucepan.

3.
 
Return the meat to the oven again for 10 minutes, then repeat the pressing. Put it back in the oven for 10 minutes more, and press again. By now you should have about 45ml (3 tbs) of juice.

4.
 
Mix the lamb stock, wine and vinegar in a large saucepan, and bring to the boil. Put in the par-roast meat, reduce to a simmer, and continue cooking for 45–50 minutes until tender.

5.
 
When the meat is ready, add the salt, lemon slices, orange zest, sugar, spices and breadcrumbs to the small saucepan containing the meat juices, then ladle in 425ml (¾ pt) of stock from the simmering lamb and cook for 5 minutes.

6.
 
Line the bottom of a deep dish with the cubed bread, put the meat on top, pour the sauce over it, arrange the lemon slices on the joint, and garnish around the rim with a little sugar.

LEG OF MUTTON WITH LEMONS
¹¹

1.
 
Put the meat in a saucepan with just enough water to cover it, and stew for 2 hours. Then add the remaining ingredients except the bread and continue cooking for about another 45 minutes until tender.

2.
 
Arrange the bread in the bottom of a deep dish, and pour the lamb on top just before serving.

SERGEANT OF THE KING’S CAPONS STEWED
¹²

1.
 
Stuff the chicken with half the herbs. Put the remainder, with the chicken, into a large pan, using a grid or a couple of spoons to prevent it sitting on the bottom. Cover with water, bring to the boil, skim, and reduce to a gentle simmer for 2 hours.

2.
 
10 minutes before serving, heat together the remaining ingredients except the bread to make a sauce.

3.
 
Arrange the bread in a deep dish, place the drained chicken on top, and pour the sauce over it just before serving.

SERGEANT OF THE KING’S CAPONS IN DOUCE
¹³

1.
 
Roast the chicken with a little butter or oil at 200°C (400°F, gas mark 6) allowing 20 minutes per 450g (1lb) plus 20 minutes.

2.
 
Soak the almonds in water for 30 minutes, drain, then grind with 575ml (1 pt) water, adding and pouring it off little by little and straining it through a cloth to make almond milk.

3.
 
Put the almond milk into a small saucepan, add the saffron, sugar and salt, bring to the boil, stir in half the wine, and set to one side.

4.
 
Arrange the toasted bread in a deep dish, pour the rest of the wine over it, leave it for 5 minutes, then pour on the almond milk sauce and place the roast chicken on top just before serving.

SMOTHERED RABBITS
¹⁴

1.
 
Clean and joint the rabbits and rub them with the salt and pepper.

2.
 
Peel and quarter the onions, put them into a pot with the remaining ingredients except the bread, and simmer for 1½ hours, until the rabbit is cooked.

3.
 
Arrange the bread in the bottom of a dish, lay the rabbit joints on top, then pour their juices over them.

WHITE PUDDINGS OF HOG’S LIVER
¹⁵