Antiquitates culinariæ; or curious tracts relating to the culinary affairs of the old English, with a preliminary discourse, notes, and illustrations / By the Reverend Richard Warner.

  • Richard Warner
Date:
1791
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Antiquitates culinariæ; or curious tracts relating to the culinary affairs of the old English, with a preliminary discourse, notes, and illustrations / By the Reverend Richard Warner. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    As foon however as flefh was given to man for aliment, cooking became a more ferious concern j and its rules more numerous and complicated. Roafting, boil¬ ing *, and frying meat, were foon in general ufe, and meals became more diver- fified than before. In the xviiith chapter of Genefis, we have the picture of a patriarchal entertainment; which, though it does not boaft any of the tricks of modern cookery, nor rife perhaps to the modern idea of good chear, yet prefents a very pleafing picture of comfortable living -f*. It was not long, before combinations of different meats were introduced, and pottage, and favoury difhes invented From the variety of folemn feafts which the Jews obferved, and their numerous facrifices §, habits of eating frequently, might gradually be introduced amongft them; it is certain however, they were not particularly nice, in the preparation of their food. Their repafts, in general, were far from luxurious; and the very name by which their ordinary meals were known, firongly characterizes the fimplicity of them ||. The firfi: inhabitants of Greece, were remarkably Ample in their diet *. We find grain in its natural fiate, and even acorns-f-, in their bill of fare This ried into the ftomach, and there, as in an oven, were fermented, heated, and converted into food. Imitating nature as clofely as they could, they bruifed their grain with Hones, and mixing the flour with water, and knead¬ ing it, they produced a pafle, which they formed into cakes and baked on the fire, till in procefs of time the art was compleated by the invention of ovens. Apud Senec. Epift. xci. p. 409. * The Ample mode the early inhabitants of Palefine purfued in lolling their meat, is yet retained, by their defcendants, and thus defcribed by an accurate traveller. “ They make in their tents or houfes an hole about a “ foot and an half deep, wherein they put their earthen pipkins or pots, with the meat in them clofed up, fo that “ they are in the half above the middle, three fourth parts thereof they lay about with Jlones, and the fourth part “ is left open, through which they fling in their dried dung, (and alfo fometimes fmall twigs and ftraws, when “ they can have them) which burn immediately, and give fo great an heat, that the pot groweth fo hot as if it ,c flood in the middle of a lighted coal heap, fo that they boil their meat with a little fire, quicker than we do “ ours, with a great one on our hearths.” Rauwalf. p. 192. Harmer’s obfervat. v. VI. p. 267. f The words of the facred text are thefe. “ And Abraham haftened into the tent unto Sarah, and faid. Make “ ready quickly three meafuresof fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth. And Abraham ran unto “ the herd, and fetched a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man, and he halted to drefs it. And “ he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had drefled, and fet it before them; and he flood by them “ under the tree, and they did eat.” Gen. xviii. v. 6, 7, 8. The only Angular circumftance in this beautiful pidture of patriarchal fimplicity, is, the kind of fauce ferved up with the calf, butter and milk. This is elucidated however, by the following anecdote taken from Ockley’s Hiftory of the Saracens vol. ii. p. 277. Abdolmelick the caliph, upon his entering into Cufah, made a fplendid entertainment. “ When he was fat down, Amrou the “ fon of Hareth, an ancient Mechzumian, came in ; he called him to him, and placing him by him upon his “ fopha, alked him what meat he liked belt of all that he had eaten. The old Mechzumian anfwered, an afs’s “ neck well feafoned, and well roafted. You do nothing fays Abdolmelick; what fay you to a leg or a lhoulder “ of a fucking lamb, well roafted, and covered over with butter and milk.” Harmer’s obferv. v. I. p. 319. I Vide Gen. c. xxv. v. 29 and c. xxvii. v. 4. The common pottage of the inhabitants of Palejiine at this day is made by cutting their meat into little pieces, and boiling them with rice, flour, and parfley. This is probably the patriarchal pottage, for the manners of the Arabs are nearly the fame as they were three thoufand years ago. § They feafted always after facrificing, eating what remained of the facrifce. Vide Godwin’s Mofes and Aaron, p. 85. || They were called Arucoth, which word fignifies properly, fuch fare as travellers and way-faring men ufe on their journeys. Godwin’s Mof. and Aaron, p. 86. Repeated paflages in holy writ bear teflimony to the conftant ufe of oil, honey, milk, and butter, by the Jews at their entertainments; they were indeed efteemed great delicacies among that people, and are Hill held as fuch throughout the holy land. In the oil, it was cufto- mary with them to dip their bread; a cuftom which the Arabs pra&ife to this day. Vide Pococke’s Trav. vol. II. p. 5. Their moft efteemed meats were the calf, the kid, and the lamb; the laft is particularly mentioned by Amos in his enumeration of the Jewifh luxuries. Amos c. vi. v. 4. Sir John Chardin fpeaks in ftrong terms of the exquifite delicacy of the Paleftine kid and goat. Harmer’s obferv. vol. I. p. 322, * Hippocrat. de prif. med. t. II. c. i. p. 154. f Vide Ailian. Var. Hift. Lib. iii. c. 39. t Vide Suid. voce OvAo0ur. t. II. p. 738.