Skirrets, Saphire and Spynage

[Guest guest]

Skirrets: An Eastern Asian plant (sium Sisarum) having a sweet , edible

root.

 

Spynage: Spinach. In some places the word spinach refers to local pot

herbs.

 

Saphire: Unable to locate a definition of this plant. I'll bet someone

in this group has heard of it and can tell us.

 

Deanna in Colorado

[Guest guest]

I found 'Saphire' it is Aster x dumosus

Deanna in Colorado

 

 

, " genny_y2k " <genny_y2k

wrote:

>

> Skirrets: An Eastern Asian plant (sium Sisarum) having a sweet ,

edible

> root.

>

> Spynage: Spinach. In some places the word spinach refers to local pot

> herbs.

>

> Saphire: Unable to locate a definition of this plant. I'll bet

someone

> in this group has heard of it and can tell us.

>

> Deanna in Colorado

>

[Guest guest]

Hi,

 

I think a typo lead to saphire but you

never know with these old recipes and

you certainly never know with herbs.

So is the original samphire or saphire?

 

In the original recipe posted:

" Onyons boiled and stript from their rinde, and

served up with Vinegar, Oyle, and Pepper is a

good simple Sallet;

So is Samphire, Beane-cods, Sparagus, and

Coucumbers, also all young Lettice, Cabage

lettice, Pulslane, boyled Carrets, Skirrets

and divers other hearbes which may be served

in likewise with Oyle, Vinegar, and Pepper,

with a world of others too tedious to nominate. "

 

I've seen the same name used for many

different herbs, particularly in old

(like middle ages old) recipes or

medicinal herb references but also even

unto current times (er, in current times?)

herbs/plants have been called different

things in different countries/continents,

not just a matter of different languages,

but even in English.

 

Anyway, aster might be correct since some

asters are used in salads, I just couldn't

find a reference to that particular aster

being used. Certainly a possibility though.

 

I did find this web page:

http://www.languagehat.com/archives/002743.php

which has both the samphire and saphire spelling.

It seems to reference a plant or plants used

in England but also along the seaside.

 

" The plant Crithmum maritimum (growing on rocks

by the sea), the aromatic saline fleshy leaves of

which are used in pickles "

 

" Cookery. The leaves of samphire, used chiefly as a

pickle.

1624 BOYLE in Lismore Papers (1886) II. 138 A smale

Barricke of Sampier. [...] 1747-96 H. GLASSE Cookery

xix. 306 Take the samphire that is green, lay it in a

clean pan. "

 

" samphire, an English plant known also as sea fennel,

described long ago as " of a spicie taste with a

certaine saltnesse, " not to mention the samphire which

is the seaside purslane, the prickly samphire which is

the sea parsnip, ... "

 

" Samphire is a confusing term, for it refers to two

completely unrelated plants. The original samphire, a

member of the carrot family, grows on coastal rocks —

whence its name, which is a garbling of French (herbe

de) St Pierre, 'St Peter's herb', an allusion to its

rocky habitat (Peter comes from a Greek word for

'rock'). Its aromatic leaves have long been used in

pickles, and people ran considerable risks to gather

it (Edgar in King Lear, staring over the imaginary

cliff edge, conjured up the vertiginousness of their

situation: 'Halfway down hangs one that gathers

samphire, dreadful trade! Methinks he seems no bigger

than his head'). Much more familiar under the name

samphire nowadays, however, is an altogether different

plant, genus Salicornia, which first had the term (in

full marsh samphire) applied to it in the eighteenth

century. It grows in saltmarshes, and has fleshy

succulent leaves that can be eaten as a vegetable,

lightly boiled or steamed (no need to add salt). Its

alternative name, glasswort, refers to the former use

of ash from its burnt leaves in making glass. "

 

Now the original recipe does have purslane so

one wonders if it might also contain sea purslane.

I don't know.

 

Spynage. I'd probably go with spinach since

one can find recipes such as this:

http://celtnet.org.uk/recipes/elizabethan/fetch-recipe.php?rid=eliz-pinach-pie

<http://celtnet.org.uk/recipes/elizabethan/fetch-recipe.php?rid=eliz-pinach-pie>

A Tarte of Spynage (Spinach Pie)

and one assumes if one mentions lettuce

one probably is also referring to spinace

but who knows for sure, other than the

original author or familiar with the

original author.

http://www.medievalcookery.com/cgi-bin/display.pl?pnboc:43

" Another broathe with longwortes. Take mutton and

fayre water, and let them boyle upo nthe fyre and then

take lettuse or spynage... "

 

I'd agree also with the skirets as Sium sisarum

since articles seem to indicate it being available

in early European times:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skirret

" The skirret is of Chinese origin, but may have

arrived in Europe in early times: it is presumed to be

the siser mentioned by Pliny the Elder as a favourite

of the Emperor Tiberius (Natural History, 19.27.90). "

 

" It has a cluster of sweet, bright white roots which

are similar to sweet potatoes, but longer (15-20 cm).

Skirrets may be boiled, stewed, or roasted. The woody

core is inedible, and should be removed before cooking

because it is difficult to remove after. "

 

Yum.

 

Ah, here's a source I'll have to look at some

more in the future.

 

http://members.aol.com/renfrowcm/gerardp4.html

" Skirrets - pages 1026-1027.

 

" Sisarum. Skirrets.

The roots of the Skirret be moderately hot and moist;

they be easily concocted; they nourish meanly, and

yeeld a reasonable good iuice: but they are something

windie, by reason whereof they also prouoke lust. They

be eaten boiled, with vineger, salt, and a little

oile, after the manner of a sallad, and oftentimes

they be fried in oile and butter, and also dressed

after other fashions, according to the skil of the

cooke, and the taste of the eater... "

 

Ooh, provoke lust . . .

 

Same source has interesting notes on spinach though.

" Spinach - page 330.

 

" Spinacia. Spinach.

It is eaten boiled, but yeeldeth little or no

nourishment at all: it is something windie, and easily

causeth a desire to vomit: it is vsed in sallades when

it is young and tender. This herbe of all other

pot-herbes and sallade herbes maketh the greatest

diuersitie of meates and sallades. "

 

Sorry for being a bit, uh, long winded here.

 

Gary

 

--- genny_y2k <genny_y2k wrote:

 

> I found 'Saphire' it is Aster x dumosus

> Deanna in Colorado

>

>

> , " genny_y2k "

> <genny_y2k

> wrote:

> >

> > Skirrets: An Eastern Asian plant (sium Sisarum)

> having a sweet ,

> edible

> > root.

> >

> > Spynage: Spinach. In some places the word spinach

> refers to local pot

> > herbs.

> >

> > Saphire: Unable to locate a definition of this

> plant. I'll bet

> someone

> > in this group has heard of it and can tell us.

> >

> > Deanna in Colorado

[Guest guest]

I just love these old recipes. I even love the detective work needed to

work out some of the spelling. I think that the 'samphire' spelling is

probably the correct one. It is still quite common here in Holland

(zeewier/zeekraal) but it is way too salty for my taste.

 

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samphire

 

 

 

Cheers from Marie in Haarlem, Netherlands

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

samphire

[Guest guest]

put in the word samphire...its a coastal plant way to salty foe me but..it grows

in Australia... pretty green...Bron

 

 

 

 

 

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now.

 

 

[Guest guest]

good pix of samphire here

 

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/knowhow/glossary/samphire/

 

 

 

Peace,

Angela

 

great grandma recycled, she called it making do.

 

who I am is fine, it's just this body that's disabled!

 

 

 

Fussy? Opinionated? Impossible to please? Perfect. Join 's user panel and

lay it on us.

 

 

[Guest guest]

Thanks for finding that picture. It looks

interesting. I wonder if it could grow in the

SF Bay Area at all.

 

Gary

 

--- Angela <angelaamy2001 wrote:

 

> good pix of samphire here

>

>

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/knowhow/glossary/samphire/

>

>

>

> Peace,

> Angela

[Guest guest]

Gary Mattingly <gsmattingly wrote:

Thanks for finding that picture. It looks

interesting. I wonder if it could grow in the

SF Bay Area at all.

 

Gary

 

 

 

 

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yr welcome. be cool if you could grow some. like baby asparagus but salty is a

taste I'd love !! no way it'll grow around here ( w. texas ) darn it

 

 

Peace,

Angela

 

great grandma recycled, she called it making do.

 

who I am is fine, it's just this body that's disabled!

 

 

 

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