Book of Days Tales

On this date in 1397 Geoffrey Chaucer recited the Canterbury Tales for the first time at the court of Richard II. Chaucer scholars have also identified this date (in 1387) as the start of the book’s pilgrimage to Canterbury from the Tabard Inn in Southwark.

The Canterbury Tales is a collection of over 20 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer at the end of the 14^th century, during the time of the Hundred Years’ War. The tales (mostly written in verse, although some are in prose) are presented as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from Southwark to the shrine of Saint Thomas à Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The prize for this contest is a free meal at the Tabard Inn on their return.

Canterbury Tales is incomplete and there is no epilogue to indicate who won the contest nor the nature of the prize meal at the Tabard Inn.  So, I have simply picked a 14^th century recipe from the cookbook Forme of Cury (Forms of Cooking, “cury” being from French cuire) an extensive recipe collection from the 14^th century whose authors are given as “the chief Master Cooks of King Richard II.” The roll was written in late Middle English (circa 1390) on vellum and details some 205 recipes (although the exact number of recipes varies slightly between different versions).  Here is a copy of the recipe for pochee, poached eggs in a sauce flavored with saffron and ginger.

Take Ayrenn and breke hem in scaldyng hoot water. and whan þei bene sode ynowh. take hem up and take zolkes of ayren and rawe mylke and swyng hem togydre, and do þerto powdour gyngur safroun and salt, set it ouere the fire, and lat it not boile, and take ayrenn isode & cast þe sew onoward. & serue it forth.

Here is my loose translation:

Break eggs into boiling water. When they are cooked remove them.  Mix egg yolks and raw milk together and add powdered ginger, saffron, and salt.  Heat the custard mix, but do not let it boil.  Place the poached eggs on a plate and cover them with the custard.  Then serve.

The experienced cook should not need more directions except for deciding on quantities.  Here is my recipe.  I recommend two eggs per person and suggest serving them with toast or bread to sop up the sauce.  I have no idea how well cooked the yolks of the poached eggs would have been in the 14th century, but I surmise they would have been firm.  I prefer my yolks runny.  I also recommend cooking the sauce first and then keeping it warm while poaching the eggs.  The combination of ginger and saffron, which was very common in medieval cookery, adds a piquant richness to the eggs.  Use whatever quantities of these you prefer.  When experimenting with this recipe I found that the sauce was richer with the addition of a little heavy cream.  Cook’s choice.  The original recipe calls for making the sauce over heat directly but this is very dangerous.  It is easy for the yolks to curdle or scramble this way if you are not careful.  It is much safer to use a double boiler.  I’ve never owned an official one; I always use a small pan which I seat in a larger pan of near boiling water. Saves kitchen cabinet space.

©Pochee

Ingredients

12 eggs
½ cup whole milk
¼ tsp powdered saffron
½ tsp powdered ginger
4 tbsps heavy cream (optional)
salt
vinegar

Instructions

Separate 4 eggs.  Place the yolks in the top of a double boiler along with the milk, cream (if used), ginger, saffron, and salt to taste. Reserve the whites for other uses. Whisk the ingredients together until they are thoroughly mixed.

Heat the water in the bottom of the double boiler to near boiling and maintain it at that temperature.  Place the top of the double boiler over the hot water and whisk the sauce steadily but constantly.

You will notice that after several minutes the sauce produces bubbles on the surface.  This indicates that the yolks are beginning to cook.  As the yolks cook the sauce will thicken.  Remove the boiler from the heat when the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon lightly without falling off.  Keep the sauce over the hot water so that it stays warm.

At the same time that you are heating water in the double boiler, bring to the boil a generous quantity of water, with a few tablespoons of vinegar and some salt added, in a wide deep skillet. When the sauce is finished, poach the remaining 8 eggs in the boiling water, 2 at a time. You can crack the eggs directly into the water, but I prefer to crack them individually on to a saucer and then slide them gently into the skillet.  That way if by chance you break the yolk you do not have a mess in the skillet, and sliding them in gently maintains the shape of the egg better.  At the outset use a spatula under the eggs to ensure that the yolks do not stick to the bottom, otherwise they will break when you remove them.  Splash water gently over the whites with a spoon during the cooking to ensure they set quickly without overcooking the yolk. Take the eggs up with a slotted spatula, place them on a plate, and cover with the sauce.  I usually cook poached eggs to order rather than having them sit whilst the rest of the eggs cook.

Serve on heated plates with toast or crusty bread.

Serves 4