Pykes in Brasey

PERIOD: England, 14th century | SOURCE: Forme of Cury | CLASS: Authentic

DESCRIPTION: Grilled fish in a wine sauce

ORIGINAL RECEIPT:

110. Pykes in brasey. Take pykes and vndo hem on þe wombes and waisshe hem clene, and lay hem on a roost irne. Þenne take gode wyne and powdour gynger & sugur, good wone, & salt, and boile it in an erthen panne; & messe forth þe pyke & lay the sewe onoward.

- Hieatt, Constance B. and Sharon Butler. Curye on Inglish: English Culinary Manuscripts of the Fourteenth-Century (Including the Forme of Cury). London: For the Early English Text Society by the Oxford University Press, 1985.

GODE COOKERY TRANSLATION:

Grilled Pike in Sauce. Take pikes and undo them of the wombs and wash them clean, and lay them on a grill. Then take good wine and powder ginger & sugar, a good quantity, & salt, and boil it in an earthen pan; and serve forth the pike and lay on the sauce.

MODERN RECIPE:

• 2 - 4 small to medium-sized fish, gutted & cleaned (see note below)
• 2 cups red or white wine
• 1 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 1 Tbs. sugar (or to taste)
• salt to taste 

Pike are a long-snouted freshwater game & food fish, very similar to carp. Obtaining fresh fish, especially carp & pike, may be a bit difficult for some people; however, most of us can obtain some sort of whole fish from the seafood or frozen food sections of large grocery markets. Look for fish that have been gutted and cleaned, but left whole, and go for whatever variety suits your taste and pocketbook. If all else fails, feel free to use any cut of fresh fish that you can obtain.