The World That Was - Medieval Irish Cabbage Pottage (Cabbage Stew)

 Hello and Welcome to The World That Was!

Today, I'll be taking a look at early medieval cuisine - by recreating a very simple cabbage pottage. Pottage is, essentially, anything you'd toss into a pot to cook - so naturally there's a huge number of variations on the recipe. This one, however, leans heavily onto medieval Irish culinary traditions.

In any case, let's now take a look at The World That Was! Follow along with my YouTube video above!

Ingredients

1 head cabbage (savoy)

2 leeks, sliced

2 onions, thinly sliced

1 garlic clove

1L water (or stock of your choice)

rosemary

butter or oil

Method

1 - Prepare Vegetables

To begin with, we need to deal with our head of cabbage - I'm using a savoy cabbage, because they're in season at the time of recording - and they also were popular overwinter cabbages, so it works well here. Start by washing your head, and removing the tougher outer leaves, before cutting it in half. Medieval kitchens may have used the outer leaves, but I'm excluding them here, as these ones are very tough and rubbery, which would increase the cooking time. When that's done, cut your head in half. Identify the tough core of the cabbage and surgically remove it using a knife. Cut the remainder of the head into thin slices. The thinner you cut this, the faster it'll cook!

Next, Wash your leeks, and slice these into rings. Keep every segment roughly the same size, so they'll cook at the same rate. You can of course use the greens and root bulb of the leeks, as that's probably what was done in the medieval period, but I'm leaving them out here.

Now, peel and chop your onions. I used yellow onions, but really any onion would work here. Cut them thinly, so they'll cook evenly.

2 - Prepare the Pot and Cook the Stew

Then, pour some butter or olive oil into a large pot, and place it over a medium heat, until it heats up slightly. Then, when it's hot, go crush a clove or two of garlic into it, along with your onions, leeks, and cabbage. On top of this, pour about a litre of water - or a broth or stock of your choice - or as much liquid as needed, so that the ingredients are just about covered. Toss your rosemary sprigs into this, and give it all a stir, as best you can. Put all of this over a medium heat, and cover it. Leave it to simmer for about 30 minutes.

It should be done when the onions and leeks have become soft. Serve up in a bowl with a bit of the broth, and dig in!

The finished dish is light yet filling, but the real star of the show is the broth that forms from making it! You can of course sieve out all the cooked vegetables and use the remaining liquid as a soup stock or broth, or leave it in with the cabbage and leeks!

The cabbage I used - savoy - doesn't really break down in the cooking process (unlike other cabbages) and so it retains a crisp crunch that contrasts well with the soft leeks.

Pottage as a dish was a simple staple for large populations in the medieval period, as it was fairly quick and simple to make (as seen here) and was nutritious and filling! The overall recipe was also adapted to suit things that were readily available. Want some meat in it? You can boil some cuts along with your veg. Want some other ingredients? Simply cut them up and toss them in! Don't like rosemary? Try sage, mint, or coriander! It's quite versatile.

All in all, this is a quick and simple recipe that can be altered in thousands of different ways!