Recipes from the Wagstaff Miscellany - 14 Eles yne sorre

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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14.  Eles yne sorre.
Fle eles chop heme yne gobenys do heme yne a potte withe onyons and herbes hewe heme to gedyre withe hole clowys macys powdyre of pepyre powdyre of canelle a grete dele & fayre watyre & draw lyoure of bredde withe wyne do hit to gedyre sett hit one the fyre stere hit whene hit ys boyled y now colowre hit up withe sawndrys sesyne hit withe poudyre of gyngere venygere & salt and lete hit no more boyle.

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Below are three recipes for "Eels in Sorre" from medieval English cookbooks, all of which are similar to the one above.

Eles in sorry. Take eles and cut hom on culpons, and wassh hom, and take a potte, and do therin faire watur, and a lytell wyne and onyons mynced, and gode herbes, and let hit sethe; then do thi fysshe therto, and pouder of ginger and of canell, and colour hit withe faunders, and serve hit forthe.  [Arundel 334 (England, 1425)]

Eles in surre. Take eles culponde (cut in pieces) and clene wafshen, and sethe hom with half wyne, half water; arid cast therto onyons mynced, clowes, maces, pynes, railinges of corance ; and draw up a Hour therto of chippes of bred steped in wyne ; then carte therto pouder of pepur, and afterward the Hour, and also saunders and saffron; and in the scttynge doune put therto pouder of ginger, andofcanel medelet (mingled) with a lytel vinegur, and serve hit forthe.  [Arundel 334 (England, 1425)]

Elys in Sorre. Take eles, and fle hem, and choppe hem in faire colpons, And wassh hem clene, and putte hem in a faire potte; and then take parcelly, oynons, and shrede togidre to the eles; And then take pouder of peper, and (Note: Douce MS. adds: canelle, and clowes and maces, and cast ther-to, and take fressh, betweenand and broth.) broth of fissh, and set hit ouer the fire, and lete hem boyle togidre; And then take a lofe of brede, and alay the brede in the the same broth, And drawe hit thorgh a streynour; And whan the eles ben almoost y-sodde ynowe, caste there-to; (Note: Douce MS. adds: and alay hit ther-with, and cast wyne ther-to and lete hem buille to-gederys: and then take hem vppe fro the fyre and cast ther-to wyne, andc.; ) And lete hem boile togidre; and take hem vp fro the fire, and cast ther-to salte, vinegre, And serue hit forth.  [Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (England, 1430)]

Additionally, there are a couple of other eel recipes that seem very close.

To mak eles in bruet tak eles culpond and boile them with mynced onyons padley and saige and draw it with whit bred and wyne put ther to pouder of pepper canelle and salt and serue it.  [A Noble Boke off Cookry (England, 1468)]

Cvij - Sore Sengle. Take Elys or Gurnard, and parte hem half in Wyne, and half in watere, in-to a potte; take Percely and Oynonys and hewe hem smalle; take Clowes or Maces and caste ther-on; take Safroun, and caste ther-to, and sette on the fyre, and let boyle tylle it be y-now; then sette it a-doun; take poudere Gyngere, Canelle, Galyngale, and temper it vppe with Wyne, and cast on the potte and serue forth.  [Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (England, 1430)]