Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany - 13 Gingaudre

Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany (Beinecke MS 163)

This manuscript is dated about 1460.

The 200 (approx.) recipes in the Wagstaff miscellany are on pages 56r through 76v.

Images of the original manuscript are freely available on the Yale University Library website.

I have done my best to provide an accurate, but readable transcription. Common abbreviations have been expanded, the letters thorn and yogh have been replaced with their modern equivalents, and some minor punctuation has been added.

Copyright © 2013 by Daniel Myers, MedievalCookery.com

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13.  Gingaudre
Take the hedde of hake fysch the sound and the leuer do hit in a pott to gadyre make clene the poke of the sayde hake and do hit there to sethe hit welle in brothe of the selfe fische or fayre watyre tyll hit be tendour thene take yt vp lay hit one a borde peke a wey the bondys & safe the fysche hole dyse the leuer & the sounde yf the poke be not tendour y now sethe hit bettyre and do hit to gedyre kut white brede temper hit withe the same brothe and wyne draw hit thorow a lyoure put yne a pott put there to poudyre of pepyre gynger and poudyre of canell and a good coloure of sandryne set hit over the fyre stere hit whene hit boylethe put hit in the fysche and stere hit esely for brekynge and sesyne hit up withe powdyre of gyngere and a lytylle venyger & salt thene lete hytt no more boyle thu may yf thu wilte take the sound and the leuere & the poke of the codlynge and make hit in the same manere.

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There are several recipes for "Gingawdry" in medieval English cookbooks, but none that are precisely the same.  For example, this is the only one of them that specifically calls for only hake, with the others listing a variety of fish.  Here are a few of them.

Gyngawdry. XX.IIII. XIIII. Take the Powche and the Lyuour of haddok, codlyng and hake and of ooþer fisshe, parboile hem, take hem and dyce hem small, take of the self broth and wyne, a layour of brede of galyntyne with gode powdours and salt, cast þat fysshe þerinne and boile it. & do þerto amydoun. & colour it grene.  [Forme of Cury (England, 1390)]

Gyngawtre. Take the pake (a quantity) of the lyver of hake, or of codlynge, or of hadok, and parboyle hit well; then take hit up and dyse hit smal (cut it small as dice); and do hit in a postenet, and do therto the fatte of the brothe and wyn, and take light bred, and drawe hit up with the brothe nentz to thik (not too thick); and do therto galentyne a lytel, and pouder of clowes, and of maces, and let hit boyle, and colour hit grene, and serve hit forthe.  [Arundel 334 (England, 1425)]

.lxlij. Gynggaudy. Tak the ponche & the lyver of haddok, codlyng, and hake & of other fysche, perboyle hem, tak hem up and dyce hem smal, tak of the self broth & wyne & make a layour of brede, of ga lentyne with gode poudours and salt, cast that fysche therinne & boyle hit & do therto amydoun & colour hit grene & serve forth.  [Fourme of Curye, Rylands MS 7 (England, 1390)]

I suspect the word "pake" in the Arundel 334 version is actually supposed to be "poke" (e.g. pouch or sack).

The name of the recipe, along with instructions in some of the recipes to color it with parsley, show a connection to the word "gaudy," which in Middle English was the name of a particular shade of green.