Food Resources and their Transformation - Food Culture and Health in Pre-Modern Islamic Societies - page 167

The difference between them was that
the daily bread of poor was made from
inferior quality wheat or other cereals
while in times of real hardship, “second-
ary grains” such as pulses and nuts (acorn
and chestnut) had to suffice. The well-to-
do had access to the finest wheat for even
their plainest loaf; the same kitchen could
also produce “glass-bread” a loaf baked
in a thin glass mould which was broken
upon completion of the baking. Wheat
flour was also used to prepare many vari-
eties of pastry and sweetmeats.
The culinary manuals include not only
preparations for immediate consumption.
The preservation of foodstuffs by pickling
made mealtime planning more flexible.
A preparation called allām describes the
steps for slaughtering either a kid or calf
and boiling the jointed carcass in vinegar
until cooked; the meat was then soused
overnight in a mixture of vinegar, cin-
namon, galingal, thyme, celery, quince,
citron, and salt and then stored in glass
or earthenware vessels. Again, chicken
lightly boiled whole in water, salt and oil
was then jointed and the portions placed
in jars filled with vinegar and seasonings;
when ready for use it was fried in oil and
served. Vinegar, which was genuine vin
aigre , was also the preserving agent for a
wide variety of vegetable muallalāt which
included pickled onions, capers, cucum-
ber, turnip, garlic, eggplant and mint.
These dishes were offered during meals to
“cleanse the palate of greasiness, to appe-
tize, to assist the digestion, and to stimu-
late the banqueter”.
Another variety of relish or condiment
was called kawāmi. They may have been
served, several at a time, in small bowls
into which bread or morsels of food could
be dipped. Certain kinds of kāma or
kāma juice ( mā kāma ) were added to
the pot as seasoning during cooking. One
of the most important of this class of con-

diment was murrī , a cereal-based prepara-
tion often mistakenly referred to as garum ,
the fish-based condiment of the classical
world. It required a long, complicated
process which took some three months
from the end of March when preparation
commenced. The condiment could then
be stored for future use; shorter methods
lasting only two days were also known
which could have been employed the year
round.
Activities in the mediaeval kitchen were
not merely concerned with the prepara-
tion of food for pleasure but also with
matters of bodily equipoise. Recipes for
main dishes as discussed above often add
a brief note as to its benefit for the r ¶ gime
and hygiene. One dish might be recom-
mended to stimulate the appetite and
strengthen the stomach, another for cool-
ing the body. A certain class of meatless
dish called muzawwar was identified for its
aid to those with fever. Moreover, other
preparations were intended more directly
to alleviate the consequences of over-
indulgence of food, as well as to stimulate
other bodily functions and desires; these
included such “home remedies” as electu-
aries, stomachics and medicinal powders
and syrups, all prepared in the kitchen for
immediate or future use.
Finally, a word on “forbidden” bev-
erages ( arāb muskir ). Explicit religious
injunctions notwithstanding, intoxicating
beverages were consumed at every level
of society, although never by those who
strictly observed the arīa code. Recipes
are found in the cookbooks for a barley
beer called fuā which was simply and
cheaply made; fermentation was achieved
by placing the barley wort in a skin con-
tainer and leaving it for two days so that
it was ready for drinking on the third.
Moreover, wine ( nabī ]) was made in fer-
mented and unfermented varieties. Some
medical writers noted the medicinal bene-