Apicius Recipe Books & Chapters
The main source of recipes from Classical Roman times is De Re Coquinaria, by Marcus Gavius Apicius. This contains around 500 recipes. There are several modern editions of this, three of which are in print in English translation. These are:
- Cookery and Dining in Imperial Rome, edited and translated by Joseph Dommers Vehling, and published by Dover Publications, Inc., New York (1977). This was the first English translation, and while it contains a number of errors, is still perfectly usable. It has useful notes accompanying each recipe. It was published in 1936 and is still in print, having been reprinted in 1977 by Dover Publications. It is now of historical interest only, since Vehling's knowledge of Latin was not always adequate for the difficult task of translation, and several later and more reliable translations now exist.
- The Roman Cookery of Apicius, translated and adapted for the modern kitchen by John Edwards, and published by Random House Ltd., London (1985). In addition to a translation of each recipe, most recipes have a version which uses substitute ingredients.
- A Taste of Ancient Rome, by Ilaria Gozzini Giacosa and published by The Univ. of Chicago Press (1992). This is highly regarded, and has the text in both Latin and English of a selection (but not all) of the recipes.
The consensus, however, is that the best edition is
- The Roman Cookery Book, edited by Barbara Flower and Elizabeth Rosenbaum, and published by Harrap (1958). As far as I can tell — still checking — the work was simultaneously published in the UK and the US, and in the US the copyright was not renewed in the appropriate years (1985 or 1986): which, pursuant to current copyright law, and in particular the Uruguay Round Act (URAA), puts the work in the public domain also.
Flower and Rosenbaum provided the original Latin in their book, which neither Vehling nor Edwards does, though Vehling does supply the Latin in cases where the interpretation of the original manuscripts is disputed. The main body of both books consists of an annotated translation of each recipe. Edwards also provides his own version of the recipe, which uses substitutes (some unacceptable in my view) for hard to find ingredients, and provides a few authentic Roman menus.
The Roman Cookery of Apicius is the more suitable text for a less experienced cook, and it is supposed to contain a more accurate translation. Cookery and Dining in Imperial Rome is better if you intend to experiment with the recipes, incuding attempts to recreate them exactly, though to do that you need to be aware of Vehling's assumptions and errors (e.g. being unaware that pumpkin or green beans were unknown to the Romans). The best bet if you cannot get a second-hand copy of Flower & Rosenbaum is to get Giacosa plus either Vehling (and where Vehling disagrees with Giacosa, disregard Vehling) or Edwards (but disregard Edward's adaptation of the recipes and just use his translations).
The text is organized in ten books, most of which, despite their titles, cater largely to the diets and practices of the wealthiest classes, are arranged in a manner similar to a modern cookbook:
- Epimeles — The Chef (The Careful Housekeeper)
- Sarcoptes — Meats
- Cepuros — From the garden
- Pandecter — Various dishes
- Ospreos — Peas, beans, lentils, chickpeas, etc.
- Aeropetes — Fowl
- Polyteles — Gourmet dishes
- Tetrapus — Quadrupeds
- Thalassa — Seafood
- Halieus — Fish
The contents are out of order, with some recipes in chapters not consistent with the chapter title. Some recipes are present in duplicate, some are believed to be truncated, sometimes a line seems to be missing.
Book I. The Careful Experienced Cook: Lib. I. Epimeles
Basic cooking tips including storage and preserving food, substitutions, troubleshooting, medicinal mixes, and standard spice mixes and sauces.
Chap. I. Fine Spiced Wine. Honey Refresher For Travelers.
Chap. Ii. Roman Vermouth.
Chap. Iii. Rose Wine. Violet Wine. Rose Wine Without Roses.
Chap. Iv. Liburnian Oil.
Chap. V. To Clarify Muddy Wine.
Chap. Vi. To Improve A Broth With A Bad Odor.
Chap. Vii. To Keep Meats Fresh Without Salt. To Keep Cooked Sides Of Pork.
Chap. Viii. To Make Salt Meats Sweet.
Chap. Ix. To Keep Fried Fish. To Keep Oysters.
Chap. X. To Make Laser Go A Long Way.
Chap. Xi. To Make Honey Cakes Last. To Make Spoiled Honey Good. To Test Spoiled Honey.
Chap. Xii. To Keep Grapes. To Keep Pomegranates. To Keep Quinces. To Preserve Fresh Figs. To Keep Citron. To Keep Mulberries. To Keep Pot Herbs. To Preserve Sorrel. To Keep Truffles. To Keep Hard-Skinned Peaches.
Chap. Xiii. Spiced Salts For Many Ills.
Chap. Xiv. To Keep Green Olives.
Chap. Xv. Cumin Sauce For Shellfish. Another.
Chap. Xvi. Laser Flavor. Another.
Chap. Xvii. Wine Sauce For Truffles. Another.
Chap. Xviii. Oxyporum.
Chap. Xix. Hypotrima.
Chap. Xx. Oxygarum, Digestive. Another.
Chap. Xxi. Mortaria.
Book II. Minces: Lib. Ii. Sarcoptes [1]
Chopped meats and fish for sausages and patties and fillings.
Chap. I. Forcemeats, Sausage, Meat Puddings, Meat Loaves.
Chap. Ii. Hydrogarum, Spelt Pudding And Roux [2].
Chap. Iii. Sow’s Matrix, Blood Sausage.
Chap. Iv. Lucanian Sausage.
Chap. V. Sausage.
Book III. The Gardener: Lib. Iii. Cepuros
Cooked vegetables, salads and dressings.
Chap. I. To Boil All Vegetables Green.
Chap. Ii. Vegetable Dinner, Easily Digested.
Chap. Iii. Asparagus.
Chap. Iv. Pumpkin, Squash.
Chap. V. Citrus Fruit, Citron.
Chap. Vi. Cucumbers.
Chap. Vii. Melon Gourd, Melon.
Chap. Viii. Mallows.
Chap. Ix. Young Cabbage, Sprouts, Cauliflower.
Chap. X. Leeks.
Chap. Xi. Beets.
Chap. Xii. Pot Herbs.
Chap. Xiii. Turnips, Navews.
Chap. Xiv. Horseradish And Radishes.
Chap. Xv. Soft Cabbage.
Chap. Xvi. Field Herbs.
Chap. Xvii. Nettles.
Chap. Xviii. Endive And Lettuce.
Chap. Xix. Cardoons.
Chap. Xx. Cow-Parsnips.
Chap. Xxi. Carrots And Parsnips.
Book IV. Miscellanea: Lib. Iv. Pandecter [1]
Aspic salads and one-dish meals, condiments and dressings.
Chap. I. Boiled Dinners.
Chap. Ii. Dishes Of Fish, Vegetables, Fruits, And So Forth.
Chap. Iii. Finely Minced Dishes, Or Isicia.
Chap. Iv. Porridge, Gruel.
Chap. V. Appetizing Dishes.
Book V. Legumes: Lib. V. Osprion [1]
Chickpeas, lentils, peas and beans, many served over savory grain puddings.
Chap. I. Pulse, Meal Mush, Porridge, Etc.
Chap. Ii. Lentils.
Chap. Iii. Peas.
Chap. Iv. Beans Or Peas In The Pod.
Chap. V. Barley Broth.
Chap. Vi. Green Beans, Baiæan Beans.
Chap. Vii. Fenugreek.
Chap. Viii. Green String Beans And Chick-Peas.
Book VI. Fowl: Lib. Vi. Aëropetes
Mostly chicken but also ostrich, crane, flamingo, parrot, and sauces for them.
Chap. I. Ostrich.
Chap. Ii. Crane Or Duck, Partridge, Doves, Wood Pigeon, Squab And Divers Birds.
Chap. Iii. Thrush.
Chap. Iv. Figpecker.
Chap. V. Peacock.
Chap. Vi. Pheasant.
Chap. Vii. Goose.
Chap. Viii. Chicken.
Book VII. Sumptuous Dishes: Lib. Vii. Polyteles
Called "Sumptuous Dishes" which refers to the "sumptuary laws" in Roman times that put high taxes on certain rare ingredients. These dishes feature those ingredients. Rare cuts of meat, and expensively raised animals (fig-fed pork, for example). Truffles. Mushrooms. Snails. Large numbers of eggs. Dates. Apricots. Large amounts of almonds (for a marzipan sweet).
Chap. I. Sow’s Womb, Cracklings, Bacon, Tenderloin, Tails And Feet.
Chap. Ii. Sow’s Belly.
Chap. Iii. Fig-Fed Pork.
Chap. Iv. Tid-Bits, Chops, Steaks.
Chap. V. Roasts.
Chap. Vi. Boiled And Stewed Meats.
Chap. Vii. Paunch.
Chap. Viii. Loins And Kidneys.
Chap. Ix. Pork Shoulder.
Chap. X. Livers And Lungs.
Chap. Xi. Home-Made Sweets.
Chap. Xii. Bulbs, Tubers.
Chap. Xiii. Mushrooms.
Chap. Xiv. Truffles.
Chap. Xv. Taros, Dasheens.
Chap. Xvi. Snails.
Chap. Xvii. Eggs.
Book VIII. Quadrupeds: Lib. Viii. Tetrapus
Literally four-footed animals, which includes cow, goat, sheep, boar, and even a sort of opossum. They are oven roasted, spit roasted, and stuffed. Lots of sauce recipes for dressing the raw meat, and then for serving with the cooked meat.
Chap. I. Wild Boar.
Chap. Ii. Venison.
Chap. Iii. Chamois, Gazelle.
Chap. Iv. Wild Sheep.
Chap. V. Beef And Veal.
Chap. Vi. Kid And Lamb.
Chap. Vii. Pig.
Chap. Viii. Hare.
Chap. Ix. Dormouse.
Book IX. Seafood: Lib. Ix. Thalassa
Lots of sauces for the seafood, and ways of cooking things from lobster to oysters.
Chap. I. Shellfish.
Chap. Ii. Ray.
Chap. Iii. Calamary.
Chap. Iv. Cuttlefish.
Chap. V. Polypus.
Chap. Vi. Oysters.
Chap. Vii. All Kinds Of Bivalves.
Chap. Viii. Sea Urchin.
Chap. Ix. Mussels.
Chap. X. Sardines.
Chap. Xi. Fish Sauces.
Chap. Xii. Baian Seafood Stew
Book X. The Fisherman: Lib. X. Halieus
Lots of sauces for use with fish, generally assumed to be translated from a Greek sauce book.
Chap. I. Different Kinds Of Fish.
Chap. Ii. Murenas.
Chap. Iii. Eel.
