By Lord Heinrich von Holstein
The Roman cookbook De Re Coquinaria , attributed to the legendary gourmand Marcus Gavius Apicius, describes a vibrant cuisine full of bold and contrasting flavors. After redacting and cooking several recipes from the book, I decided to make a composite “barbecue” sauce that incorporates some of Apicius’s favorite flavors.
[223] ANOTHER [sauce]
ALITER
PEPPER, LOVAGE, LASER, WINE [1] MOISTENED WITH BROTH. ADD WINE AND BROTH TO TASTE. MASK THE WOOD PIGEON OR SQUAB WITH IT. SPRINKLE WITH PEPPER [2] AND SERVE.
[1] Tac., Tor. laserum, vinum; G.-V. l. vivum.
[2] Wanting in Tor.
(Cooking and Dining in Imperial Rome)
Here, in the section dedicated to cooking fowl, we find a sauce with a common trio of spices: pepper, lovage, and laser (also known as “silphium” or modernly asafoetida). We also see the base of the sauce combing wine and garum, an ancient Mediterranean fermented fish sauce that has been translated as “broth” in this text.
[232] ANOTHER WAY
ALITER
ROAST THE BIRD. CRUSH PEPPER, LOVAGE, CELERY SEED, SESAM [1] PARSLEY, MINT, SHALLOTS, DATES, HONEY, WINE, BROTH, VINEGAR, OIL, REDUCED MUST TO TASTE.
[1] Tor. sesamum, defrutum; G.-V. s. frictum.
(Cooking and Dining in Imperial Rome)
In this sauce we see other ingredients such as vinegar, honey, and “defrutum”, a condiment made of reduced grape must.
[239] GUINEA HEN
PULLUM NUMIDICUM
PREPARE [1] THE CHICKEN [as usual; par-] BOIL IT; CLEAN IT [2] SEASONED WITH LASER AND PEPPER, AND FRY [in the pan; next] CRUSH PEPPER, CUMIN, CORIANDER SEED, LASER ROOT, RUE, FIG DATES AND NUTS, MOISTENED WITH VINEGAR, HONEY, BROTH AND OIL TO TASTE [3] WHEN BOILING THICKEN WITH ROUX [strain] POUR OVER THE CHICKEN, SPRINKLE WITH PEPPER AND SERVE.
[1] Curas.
[151][2] Remove skin, tissues, bones, etc., cut in pieces and marinate in the pickle.
[3] Immerse the chicken pieces in this sauce and braise them to a point.
(Cooking and Dining in Imperial Rome)
Lastly, we see this example reiterating some of the previous ingredients but also showing the process of thickening a sauce with flour (translated as “roux”).
From these recipes and many recipes in De Re Coquinaria we find some of the most common ingredients Romans used to obtain flavors of salt (garum), sour (vinegar), sweet (honey, defrutum), spicy (pepper, lovage), and pungency (laser). In modern times, we often see these flavors combined in a barbecue sauce, hence the naming of this creation.
Ingredients
- Garum (substitute: East Asian fish sauce)
- Wine vinegar
- Honey
- Defrutum (substitute: grape juice boiled and reduced by half)
- Long pepper
- Lovage leaf
- Laser (asafoetida)
- Wheat flour
Recipe
Combine roughly equal portions of the garum, vinegar, honey, and defrutum in a pot and heat. Grind the long pepper and lovage leaf in a mortar, add to pot. Add only a small amount of the asafoetida to the pot, as this spice is VERY potent. Mix a little flour with some cold water to make a slurry. When the sauce is close to boiling, add the flour slurry bit by bit until desired thickening is achieved.
Sources
“Cooking and Dining in Imperial Rome.” The Project Gutenberg, August 19, 2009,