I have a longer post planned on the history of stuffed dumplings/ravioli/pierogi/manti and their likely origins in Central Asia. In the meantime, I wanted to share some lovely images that Facebook acquaintance Jonathan Ouelette took while at the Xinjiang Museum (used with permission).
Yes, those are dumplings! They are from the cemetery in Turfan City, near Xinjiang. The cemetery was in use from the 4th to the first half of the 8th C, and the conditions there are so dry that items were extremely well preserved.
Jonathan also shared a picture of bread from the same site.
That led to a discussion of bread and bread stamps.. Nadeem Ahmad says that medieval bread was essentially identical to modern Central Asian bread, and he shared an image with a clay model of bread and a bread stamp, from a Russian book (Fig 6 and 7 Распопова, 1999, Металлические изделия из Пенджикента). They are at the bottom right of the image below.
This led, of course, to a search for information about naan baking, and the use of bread stamps, and finally to the purchase of my own stamp.
Now I just need the weather to cool off a bit so I can try baking some naan.
Late last year, an acquaintance (David Friedman, who has published many cookbooks in the Cariadoc’s Miscelleny series), put me on to a document he was looking to translate. It is from the ebook “Le Limousin historique: recueil de toutes les pièces manuscrites pouvant servir à l’histoire de l’ancienne province du Limousin”, by Achille Leymarie, published in 1837. This is a valuable document because it provides considerable detail about the bread baking process, from a time when there are no detailed recipes. The translation is my own, as are any errors. I have deliberately tried to do an exact translation, rather than one with more streamlined modern English. If you have suggestions for corrections to the text, please let me know.
Testing White Bread
Done by the authority of our consuls of the castle and chastellenie (a small administrative unit immediately surrounding the castle) of Limoges, baker applicants of Limoges, saying that often they have been fined by our provost and criminal judge of Limoges, because en weighing their white bread, the provost said that her found the bread to be of less weight and smaller than it should, and our attorney said the opposite, and that said bakers cheated the people and the common cause, by not making the weight and size the should; therefor we have requested several times that the assay of this white bread be made, saying that in this way each measurement should be made; understanding that some years the wheat are not as good for bread as others, and in order that they are made by us using this fact (standardization?) and that it has been a long time since Limoges did such an assay; at their request, have the opinion of several people who are experts in such matters, our below-named consuls, having been granted to undertake this assay, and for those here to see it done, we have committed ourselves to have present before all, the wise gentlemen Mathieu du Peyrat and Guilhaume de Julien, bourgeois merchants and consuls from here; and also the wise gentlemen Francois Audier and Martial Audier bourgeois and provost of Limoges; and the said male and female bakers of this white bread, and have commissioned by them Bernard du Domalet and Mathieu Bela; presently our clerk, and in undertaking this assay, the undertook and proceeded everything that follows.
Masters (charged) Jean David and Martial Roche to make the test and swear to make a good report, which they afterwards did. And from the report that they did and the bread it made, it was found that a selier (unknown measurement, possibly setier – I found one reference that seemed to imply that there were 12 setiers in 240 marcs of bread. Elsewhere, it seems to have been a price, rather than a weight) of yeast made bread that weighed 120 marcs (one marc = a weight of 226 grams in Limoges during the Middle Ages https://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/marc-monnaie/).
And first is it true that the Saturday 22nd day of the month of February 1499, at around noon, those above-named men from one (county?) and another, were transported to the cloister at the time of the big market, and the accepted by common consent a sextier of yeast, of neither the heighest nor the lowest price, that is to say an (average? Midpoint?) between the highest price of 12 s 4 d per sextier and the lowest price of 11s 6d. And in this way they had the sextier at 11s 11d.
Item. And the said sextier of yeast was presented to the city weights, called the king’s weight, and was weighed with the bag at 96 ¼ lb, subtracting the weight of the sack of 2 ¼ lb, leaving a net weight of 94 lb.
Item. And forthwith, in the presence of those below, it was taken to the Saint-Estienne mill, for grinding.
Item. And it was passed through a screen by the miller, in the presence of those above, and taken by him his right to mill, a cup was put to the grain mill which needed and milled another grain, and forthwith its ground, taken from the other, and all saw it milled without any fraud or deception.
Item: And this ground and put in the said sack was returned to the king’s weights and weighed as research, and the milled part weighed eighty-one pounds of flour.
Item. And on that day, taken in the presence of those above, this flour with the said sack into the communal house called the consulate, and put in a large coffer that locks with two keys, and one was given into the custody of Bernard du Domalat , one of the said commisioned bakers, and the other to sir Mathieu du Peyrat, and the coffer could not be opened without these two keys.
Item. And on the arrival of Tuesday 25th of the month of February, those commissioned above-named were transported from one side and the other, and chose a baruter to sift said flour and they were given one (a baruteau or barruteau could come from the word barrutines, a kind of silk. In casual language or slang one still says brrutelar to describe the action of making a loud noise, such as one produced _____). And opening the coffer with two keys, and the flour with said sack was carried before them to the house of father Noalke, pastry chef, for him to pass said flour through his sieve.
Item. And he was commissioned to pass with said baruteau said flour, a certain Guillete moter of Leonard the bonetier (possibly hosier), expert at doing this, whichat the common consent of sa;id commissioners, and in their presence, the flour was sifted and it was agreed by said commssioners of the lords that said bakers named above, of the sifting of the flour from the bran several times, saying that the bran was sufficiently sifted out to the advantage of those bakers.
Item. And after that flour was sifted and put in that sack and weighted in the presence of those above, the flour and the sack weight 60 pl, less 2 lb for the sack, makes net 58.
Item. For the yeast 10 lbs was put in.
Item. The weight of the bran used to make bolent (boulen is the largest part of the wheat grain that is put in second grade bread), net 9 lb.
Item. The weight of the rest of the bran, removed from the bolent, net 19 1/4 lb.
Item. The next day on the 26th February to refresh the dough (so possibly water?), 3 lb 2 oz.
Item. Salt, 6 oz.
Item. To make, as much for white bread as for bolent, besides the ten pounds above declared as yeast for the dough, 13 lb 2 oz.
Item. And this flour and dough taken, the baker Belac and order that a female servant baker and exper in themake, it was agreed, first between the that there was enough yeast and dough, and made by weight and piece, said that there would be, for each bread, 15 oz dough, which was duly don by the above named, and and called the chambermaid to help her Jehannette Base, wife of Pierre du Vergier, baker.
Item. It was found and made 75 white breads of said flour, and each weighed 15 ounces, and 12 bolens of 26 marcs, 3 3/3 oz.
Item. And it was done that after weighing, the bakers turned to the oven of said Noalhe, and put first a layer of stra on its bloor, and afterwards a cover on top, and after a linsail (lintel, horizontal support that works as the baking stone?) and on top put said dough in pieces, as already weighed out, and on top two linsaux (plural of linsaill) and said cover.
Item. And after said dough had been so covered and stayed for two hours or so, and that it had risen enough, and that said Noalhe and the chambermaids opined, in the presence and with the consent of said Belac and Damalat, that it was ready to put into the oven, and that said oven was sufficiently hot and ready to put said dough, and had been promptly put the dough in the oven and waited a good while, and when all agreed and said that it was cooked, and it had been taken out of the oven and taken to the Consulat.
Item. And said commissioned bakers had paid the costs of cooking, as much for the chambermaid as for the barutelle (this word shows up as a last name in the region, and in this context appears to be the work title of a female employee, but I cannot find a definite employment. In Catalan, the word appears to mean meaning “to pass through a cloth” and comes from the word bure, kind of cloth. That would make sense if the payment is to the woman who sifted the flour) 6 deniers, as for the fire, wax, salt and candle, said Noalhe, 2 sous.
Item. And to way it, it was taken to lord Mathieu Duboys the eldest, and in the presence of said commissioned bakers, was weighed in the form as follows: That is to know 27 breads at a time that weighed 37 marcs 4 oz.
Item. Another 27 breads at once which weighed 37 marcs 5 oz.
Item. Another 22 breads which weighed 30 marcs 4 ¾ oz.
Item. All these 76 breads together weighed 105 marcs 4 ¾ oz.
And all these acts were done by baking said bread by measuring the yeast, kneading, put on a cover and let it rise; to the advantage of said bakers, who could make bread appear by making it this way.
We Jehan Rogier, Pierre Ardant, Etienne Parrot, Guilhaume de Felniers and Martial Disnemandi the younger, consuls of the casel of Limoges, as much for us as for honoured and sage men lord masters Pol Guy, Mathieu Dauvergne licensed in law, Mathiu du Pérat, Hélies Lasccure master Jehan Petiot, Girault Benoist and Guilhaume
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