Minutal ex Praecoquis (from Apicius' De Re Coquinaria) IV, iii, 6
Minutal ex praecoquis:
adicies in caccabum oleum, liquamen, vinum, concides cepam ascaloniam aridam, spatulam porcinam coctam tessellatim concides. his omnibus coctis teres piper, cuminum, mentam siccam, anethum, suffundis mel, liquamen, passum, acetum modice, ius de suo sibi, temperabis, praecoqua enucleata mittis, facies ut ferveant, donec percoquantur. tractam confringes, ex ea obligas. piper aspargis et inferes.
Translation Apricot Ragout:
In a cooking pot, place olive oil, liquamen, wine, dry shallots, chopped, and a cooked leg of pork, cubed. When these are cooked, grind [together] pepper, cumin, dried mint and aniseed. Moisten with honey, liquamen, passum, a little vinegar and some of the cooking stock; mix thoroughly. Add the pitted apricots and bring to a boil; cook until they are tender. Break pastry into the dish to thicken, season with pepper and serve.
Minutal ex Praecoquis (from Apicius' De Re Coquinaria)
Ingredients:
500g of pork cubed (the original recipe called for pork shoulders)
olive oil
2 tbsp fish sauce (liquamen)
1 onion
For the Sauce:
375ml White Wine
300ml Water
1/2 tsp Black Peppercorns
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
1 sprig of fresh mint
1 sprig of fresh dill
1 tbsp honey
4 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp red wine vinegar
Dried apricots
Dried figs
Method:
Cut the pork in cubes. In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and sauté the meat and chopped onions over high heat until golden. Lower the heat, add 1 tblsp of fish sauce and cook for a few minutes. Remove the meat and set aside.
In a saucepan add the water, wine, fish sauce, and olive oil, then bring to the boil. In the meantime crush together the black pepper, cumin, fresh mint and dill in a mortar then moisten in the honey, fish sauce, a little white wine vinegar and red wine vinegar. Add to the saucepan.
Add the sauce to the the pork and onions, reduce heat and simmer. Five minutes before you are ready to serve, add the apricots and figs roughly chopped to the casserole. Serve hot.
