At Angie’s, our catering delivered includes a menu of dozens of masterfully crafted platters, each dish a culmination of culinary elements from around the world. Cooking is after all a universal love, with every culture bringing something unique to the table – both metaphorically and literally.
A culture’s culinary profile is also an invaluable tool for historians. Our recipes and preferences tell the story of our past, from the resources available to us to the other societies we interacted with.
That is the goal of this article: to delve into the history of various societies like Ancient Rome, Mediaeval Europe, and Feudal Japan through the foods they ate, specifically focusing on the more outstanding and unique dishes.
You are welcome to attempt recreating these relic recipes, but those with a more modern palate will be happy to hear that each historical item in this article will come with a considerably more appealing counterpart from our menu that is sure to get your mouth watering.
Catering Delivered: Starters
Let’s start our historical deep dive with a quick look at a few starters or appetisers from the past:
Flamingo Tongues
The famed Ancient Roman historian Pliny the Elder wrote: “Apicius, the most gluttonous gorger of all spendthrifts, established the view that the flamingo’s tongue has an especially fine flavour.”
Further insight into the culinary history of Ancient Rome reveals that the ill-titled Apicius was not alone in his fondness for flamingo tongues, with records indicating it was a popular delicacy on the banquet tables of Rome’s upper classes.
The tongue of a flamingo is wide, flat, and serrated, with a thick knob of fat at its base. There’s evidence to suggest that flamingos lived in Italy during the early Roman period, but they eventually disappeared (perhaps Apicius and his flamingo-loving ilk were to blame). The tongues were likely imported from Portugal, Spain, or North Africa after their extinction in the region.
Since the fall of the Roman Empire, there is little other evidence of flamingo tongues gracing a menu—with one notable exception. William Dampier, a famous 17th-century pirate, wrote a memoir of his world travels, in which he fondly described trying flamingo tongues. He declared, “A dish of flamingo’s tongues being fit for a prince’s table.”
You are not going to find flamingo tongues at your local butcher. However, if you’re still looking for delicious poultry, why not try the Catering Delivered Satay Chicken Skewer with Peanut Satay Sauce instead? The chicken is roasted to tenderness and doused in a spicy teriyaki marinade that pairs perfectly with the subtly sweet peanut satay sauce. It is a canapé that strikes the balance between sweet, robust spice and hearty nuttiness.
It’s also worth noting that many Roman nobles would spend such lavish sums on these feasts and their exotic ingredients that it would lead to their financial ruin. Apicius was one of these unfortunate souls who was driven to destitution by his expensive appetites. However, with our catering delivered you’ll avoid this fate, as we offer excellent rates for premium goods and services.
Catering Delivered: Black Banquet Jellyfish Frittata
We return to Ancient Rome, to the palace of Emperor Domitian, who ruled during the 1st century. Domitian was a popular ruler among his armies and the general populace, but he was reviled by the members of the Roman Senate, who considered him a tyrant. However, contemporary accounts of the emperor’s unusual dinner parties can offer other clues as to why he was so unpopular with his court.
One story tells of Domitian throwing a dinner party in year 90, which he dubbed ‘The Black Banquet.’ The entire dining hall was decorated pitch-black, lit only by the flickering glow of Roman tomb lamps. Each guest was given a gravestone with his own name inscribed on it. The mood was understandably subdued, worsened by Domitian himself, who spoke the whole night only of death and slaughter.
The grim experience was further worsened by the food, which was also dyed black, likely done using cuttlefish ink. A sensationalist cookbook from the time tilted Apicius (possibly connected to the same Apicius known for his love of flamingo tongues) describes a recipe from this banquet for a black jellyfish frittata.
Essentially, a frittata is made using a flaky fish, dyed using cuttlefish ink and topped with eviscerated jellyfish. It is also spiced using, among other things, rue. Rue is a bitter and mildly toxic herb popular in ancient Roman cooking. Even if you could acquire all the ingredients to recreate this culinary punishment, it might be best not to.
It is unfortunate that Domitian did not have access to our quality catering delivered, or he would surely have selected the Spicy Tuna Wrap if it were seafood-with-a-kick that the emperor was looking to serve his guests. Shredded tuna and fresh greens are drizzled in an aromatic chilli sauce and mellowed out by a generous dollop of tangy mayo before being wrapped together in a fluffy tortilla.
We are also fully equipped to cater to any event and are experienced in delivering to corporate functions, event venues, and private residences. Keep this in mind in case you’re planning to terrify the members of your senate at your next dinner party but want peace of mind concerning the refreshments.
Catering Delivered: Main Courses
Now that the appetisers are out of the way, let’s delve into the curious main courses one may have encountered at dinner parties of the past:
Catering Delivered: Nanban Ryōri
Nanban Ryōri is a fairly simple chicken dish from 16th to 17th century Japan. Boiled chicken is served atop spiced white rice and garnished with thinly sliced spring onion and black sesame. Local Japanese vegetables like daikon may be cut up and served alongside this straightforward but flavourful dish. A meal like this would likely have been enjoyed by the Shogun during their campaigns. Shogun were the respected military leaders of feudal Japan.
It is not the content of the dish that makes it fascinating, but rather its history. The story begins with the name Nanban Ryōri, which simply translates to ‘Southern barbarian dish.’ The Southern barbarians in question were none other than the Portuguese, who first contacted the Japanese in the year 1543. European influence sparked a massive political, religious, and cultural upheaval in the previously isolated Japanese society but also led to an era of great cultural exchange.
Among these exchanges was culinary inspiration, culminating in the creation of cookbooks like the Nanban Ryōrishu (Southern Barbarian Dishes), where Portuguese tastes were expressed via popular Japanese ingredients to create a host of popular new dishes.
If you are looking for a chicken dish that expresses a strong cross-cultural blend, check out the Catering Delivered Harissa Chicken. Topped on a light and crunchy chilli and parsley salad, tender pieces of chicken are marinated in harissa paste (a complex and smoky chilli paste from the Maghreb region) and glazed in a maple and pomegranate sauce.
To make it even better, you don’t have to wait for a century-long process of cultural diffusion to try this sumptuous dish. Our catering delivered brings your food directly to your doorstep as long as you are situated within the M25 London region. Place an order with at least 48 hours’ notice or as far in advance as four weeks. You can select the exact date and time you would like your food delivered. Our chefs ensure that your platters are prepared as close to the delivery time as possible, providing maximum freshness.
Catering Delivered: Monk’s Illegal Porpoise
In 2017, while excavating the remains of an old monastery on the isle of Chapelle Dom Hue in the English Channel, archaeologists stumbled upon a puzzling discovery. When they reached the bottom of what they thought to be a human grave, the diggers discovered the aged bones of a creature none of them could identify. After contacting experts, it was determined to be the aged remains of a porpoise. This revelation raised only more questions.
It would have been easy for the monks to leave the carcass on the beach for scavengers and the tides to do away with rather than dragging it up to their monastery to bury it, ruling out a simple disposal. Theories cropped up, including that the monks may have done this to give the porpoise a Christian burial.
But there is another theory– a conspiracy. A culinary conspiracy.
Passed in 1324, the Engling monarchy established a law regarding ‘Royal Fish’. The off-law decreed that all sturgeons and whales are the lawful property of the crown, owing to their value as food sources. This law still exists today, and there’s a similar ruling concerning swans.
Building on this, historians theorise that the monks discovered the porpoise and saw it as the perfect addition to their meagre ecclesiastical rations, unwilling to let it fall into the government’s hands. They could have butchered the porpoise and quickly buried its remains to hide the evidence of their crime.
Whilst it is not a royal fish in legal definition, the Catering Delivered Pan Seared Salmon is nonetheless a meal fit for a king. Flaky, pink, and fragrant salmon is cooked to perfection and liberally dressed in a zesty lemon, caper, and cornichon mayo. Complementing these soft textures is a salad bed of sun-blushed tomatoes and crisp pea shoots.
You also will not be leaving archaeological evidence of your meal afterwards. Catering Delivered uses fully biodegradable platters for all our dishes to make our business and your event more environmentally friendly.
Catering Delivered: Dessert
Now for everyone’s favourite part of any dining experience: dessert.
Hyōrōgan
In the many wars of feudal Japan, great battles were fought by samurai warriors and their shogun commanders. However, these soldiers’ strict code of ethics and abilities kept them from certain dishonourable parts of warfare. Military deception, sabotage, espionage, and, of course, assassination. These ignominious tasks therefore fell to a secretive class of highly trained warriors: the shinobi, or ninjas.
Their missions were often long and arduous and allowed only for the carrying of minimal supplies, including simple food and water. To offset their small ration-carrying capabilities, the hyōrōgan were created. Small balls are made by blending sticky rice with plenty of sugar. The mixture is heavily seasoned with herbs and spices like cinnamon, ginseng, and lotus seeds; all added for their medicinal properties.
These sweet spheres were intended to provide a massive energy boost, and ninjas were even told to feed them to their horses if the need arose—a need like being pursued by a group of angry samurai hoping to avenge their assassinated leader.
Perhaps on your next covert mission, you should order the Catering Delivered Vegan Raspberry and Coconut Brownies. The efficient delivery system means you won’t even need to sacrifice any of your limited carrying capacity to enjoy them. The brownies are decadently soft and dark, laced with sour fruity notes from the raspberry and topped off with rich crunchy nuts and shredded coconut.
Catering Delivered is dedicated to serving you platters that (like the hyōrōgan) aren’t just delicious but nutritious. We use high-quality fresh ingredients that are blended to create health-conscious platters rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and protein.
