Garden of aromatic plants

Photos Credit : Salagon Museum

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Mesopotamians used coriander, dill, mint and rue. And there were plenty of aromatic herbs in Roman cookery but only a few spices (pepper, ginger). While medieval cuisine used a lot of spices and few aromatic herbs (though 11 varieties in the garden of the Menagier de Paris). Spices went down and herbs were rediscovered starting in the 17th century (when the bouquet garni was invented).

In 1420, Maître Chiquart only used saffron, marjory, sage, parsley and hysop while, in 1604, Lancelot de Casteau also used anise, basil, chervil, fennec, coriander, laurel and rosemary. Only in the Liber de Coquina and in the Tractatus do we find a lot of local seasoning. The upper classes deemed the oriental spices to be more efficient than the local aromatic plants, the spices of the poor.

Translator : Jean-Marc Bulit

Basil

An aromatic plant native to India, Ocimum basilicum was already known by the Romans (a recipe for peas by Apicius, uses some : LV - III.1). As with many aromatic plants, basil was of little use in medieval recipes (a time when spices were liked more), but it is found in a recipe of the Liber de Coquina (II-65).

Basil is associated with the Italian pesto and the pistou from Provence nowadays. The first written recipe for pesto alla genovese goes back to 1863. The provencal pistou soup, with tomatoes and potatoes, is a recent invention, not yet found in the recipe books of the beginning of the 20th century.

Marjoram

This labiate plant (Majorana hortensis), native to Egypt and Arabia, is often confused with oregano, also called "wild marjoram", a local perennial plant.

Apicius merely cites marjoram without using it in any recipe, and marjoram is not on the list of Charlemagne's capitulary, but marjoram was grown in the garden of the Menagier de Paris. It is warm and dry, one of the rare aromatic herbs of frequent use in medieval cuisine, often combined with parsley, with sage and with hysop (Maître Chiquart, Taillevent).

The recipe for hippocras in the Forme of Cury has marjoram.

Mint

According to Platina, the so sweet smelling mint herb stimulates appetite, protects obese people from idleness and provokes good spirits. There are numerous varieties of wild and cultivated mint in the Labiatae family. Those best known for cooking are spearmint (Mentha viridis or spicata) and peppermint (Mentha piperata).

Mesopotamians already used mint. Recipes by Apicius use both dry or fresh mint. It is found in the garden of the Menagier de Paris. Mint is also found in a Provencal soup and a teutonic broth of the Liber de Coquina, but nowhere in Chiquart recipes. The Anonimo Veneziano has mint in 4 recipes and Lancelot de Casteau in 25 ! One should wonder indeed if the use of mint in English recipes doesn't run back to the Middle Ages.

Rue

Rue (Ruta graveolens) is well known by crosswords lovers and by users of homeopathic medecine. Its smell and reputation have kept it away from our kitchens. Rue was plentily used by the Romans. Platearius has it as a medecine against head aches, toothaches, snakebites or epilepsy. But he also points out that rue makes the infant's bed come out, when it stays inside after birth : rue has abortive qualities that explain why it was used by the "good ladies" and why it is should not be eaten in big quantities by pregnant women.

The Menagier de Paris uses rue for arboulaste (a herbs omelet) depicting it as a strong and sour herb, but rue is absent from its garden. A few added rue leaves, chopped, will give a salad some character.

Dill

Already know by the Mesopotamians, dill (Anethum graveolens) is an umbel plant native to Asia that grows throughout the Mediterrenean basin. Apicius has a dozen recipes with it. The Romans thought that dill had the power of increasing ones physical energy : gladiators systematically ate some.

Hildegarde de Bingen thought dill "makes man sad" but Platéarius recommended it for the stomach and the brains. Platina thought dill drove away headaches et favored digestion. The Liber de Coquina contains 3 recipes for herbs fried with dill and one for anchovies and sardines with dill and spinach.

This plant, close to fennel, was rediscovered in modern cuisine to go along with fish.

Savory

Savory was grown in the garden of the Menagier de Paris. It is of the labiatae family. Summer savory (Satureja hortensis) is an annual herbaceous plant and winter savory (Satureja montana), the most common of the two in the garden centers today, is a ligneous perennial plant.

Savory was supposed to "sharpen the fieriness of the body" . Platina said it exited to lust and was capable of awakening a lethargic man sleeping as dead. This is why some monasteries refused to grow it.