Spices and seasonings are a normal part of our everyday lives. Sugar, salt and pepper are likely always in your kitchen. But has this always been the case? You may be surprised.
It is a well known fact that nobles enjoyed a wide variety of spices and flavourings. For example, saffron has always been more expensive than gold. This can be attributed to the crusades of the 11th century. Many of the exotic spices used by the upper class originated in eastern lands which crusaders travelled through on their way to Jerusalem.
This included spices such as;
- Cinnamon
- Safron
- Ginger
- Coriander
- Cumin
- And many more!
These spices were often kept in ‘spice chests’. Locked strongboxes made of wood and metal. This gives an idea of just how valuable these commodities were.
As well as making great gifts, spices were used in a myriad of medicines. For example, cloves were used in medieval europe as a remedy for toothache!
This is all very interesting, but how does this help you? Well, it doesn’t really but don’t click away! Do you own a mortar & pestle? If not, maybe you should invest.
The mortar and pestle is a staple of any medieval kitchen, and are still very useful today.
Fresh herbs such as rosemary and basil are packed full of oils and flavour, this simple device can work wonders in extracting these flavours. This would be a wonderful way to make your own pesto for example, the possibilities are endless.
If you are the kind of chef who uses fresh herbs and spices, get yourself one of these and go medieval on those ingredients.
The Plump Peasant 
I do own a mortar and pestle, actually, but barely ever use it. I’m buying storebought pesto instead… maybe I should make some homemade pesto instead. What spices and herbs would you recommend for a nice homemade pesto?
LikeLike