Salt and pepper were very expensive in the seventeenth century and in short supply. Dishes were often seasoned instead with mustard, cloves and mace and garnished with lemons and capers.
Salt was needed for the preservation of fish and meat.
Fresh fish could not be transported any distance from the port of landing unless they were preserved. Two of these products were Red Herring and Salt Cod. Red Herring was made with heavily salted herring that was smoked for up to three weeks in a kiln
Venice treacle, given by Thomas Sydenham to Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester in 1686, contained more than 70 ingredients including: wormwood, orange peel, angelica, nutmeg, horseradish, scurvy grass, white horehound, centaury, camomile, and juniper berries. All infused in 5 pints of sack! And what was this medicine for? A headache. Mind you, she did have good reason for a headache that year.
4 Annotations
hazel-mary • Link
Salt and pepper were very expensive in the seventeenth century and in short supply. Dishes were often seasoned instead with mustard, cloves and mace and garnished with lemons and capers.
michael f vincent • Link
Salt was needed for the preservation of fish and meat.
Fresh fish could not be transported any distance from the port of landing unless they were preserved. Two of these products were Red Herring and Salt Cod. Red Herring was made with heavily salted herring that was smoked for up to three weeks in a kiln
http://www.3men.com/history.htm
San Diego Sarah • Link
Venice treacle, given by Thomas Sydenham to Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester in 1686, contained more than 70 ingredients including: wormwood, orange peel, angelica, nutmeg, horseradish, scurvy grass, white horehound, centaury, camomile, and juniper berries. All infused in 5 pints of sack!
And what was this medicine for? A headache. Mind you, she did have good reason for a headache that year.
Bill • Link
There is also an encyclopedia entry for Venice treacle: http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclopedia/8746/