Chewitts

These small pies, rather like modern English pork pies, were known as chewitts, arranged here in a stack. Recipes varied, but they frequently contained a mixture of meat and dried fruit like mince pies. In late Stuart court cookery, they were sometimes used to garnish the elaborate bisques, terrines and olios of the first course.

The Forme of Cury by the Chief Master-Cook of King Richard II, c1390 (Cury 1390)

CHEWETES ON FLESSHE DAY. XX.IX. V. Take þer lire of Pork and kerue it al to pecys. and hennes þerwith and do it in a panne and frye it & make a Coffyn as to a pye smale & do þerinne. & do þeruppon zolkes of ayrenn. harde. powdour of gyngur and salt, couere it & fry it in grece. oþer bake it wel and serue it forth.

Chewetes on flesshe day. Take there meat of Pork and carve it all to pieces. and hens therewith and do it in a pan and fry it & make a coffin [casing] as to a pie small & do therein. & do thereupon yolks of eggs, hard, powder of ginger and salt, cover it & fry it in grease. Otherwise bake it well and serve it forth.

Fourme of Curye [Rylands MS 7] (England, 1390)

Clxxxiij. Chewettes on flesch day. Take the lyres of pork, & kerve hit al to pecys & hennes ther with. & do hit in a panne & fry hyt. & make a coffyn as to a smale pye & do ther in. & do ther uppon yolkes of ayroun harde. poudour of ginger. & salt, covere hit & fry hit in grece. other bake it wel. & serve forth.

The Forme of Cury by the Chief Master-Cook of King Richard II, c1390 (Cury 1390)

Chewetes on fyssh day. Take turbot, haddock, codling and hake and seethe it. Grind it small and do thereto dates, ground, raisins, pine-nuts, good powder and salt. Make a coffin as before said, close this therein, and fry it in oil. Otherwise stew it in ginger with sugar, or in wine, or bake it, & serve forth.

Ancient Cookery [Arundel 334] (England, 1425)

Chowettes on flesshe day. Take the ly vere of a swyn, and of hennes, and capons, and cut horn smal as to a pye, and frye hom in grese; then make sinale coffyns, and do hit therin, and do therto harde zolkes of egges, and pouder of gynger; then kov er hit, and frie hit os bake hit, and serve hit forthe.

Liber cure cocorum [Sloane MS 1986] (England, 1430)

Take lyver of porke and kerve hit smalle, As to a pye be hewen hit schalle, And hennes þerwith do alle in a panne, And frye hit wele as þou wele kanne. Make a cofyne as to smalle pye, Do þat þerin. and 3olkes þerby Of harde egges sothun, and eke þou take Powder of gynger and salt to bake. Kerve hit and frye hit in grece ful gode, Wele pynchyd serve on last by þo rode, Here endes oure cure, þat I of spake, Of potage, hasteletes, and mete And sawce þer to, with oute lesyng, Cryst mot our sowles to hevene bryng.

Two Fifteenth-century Cookery-books (Harleian MS 279), 1430

Chawettys Take Pork y-sode, & mencyd Datys, and grynd hem smal to-gederys; take yolkys of Eyroun, & putte þer-to a gode hepe, & grene chese putte þe-to; & whan it ys smal y-now, take Gyngere, Canelle, & melle wyl þi commade þer-with, & put in þin cofyns; þan take yolkys of Eyroun hard y-sothe, an kerue hem in two, & ley a-boue, & bake hem; & so nogt y-closyd, serue forth.

Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (England, 1430)

Chewettes. Take and make faire paste of floure, water, saffron, and salt; And make rownde cofyns there-of; and then make stuff as thou doest for rissheshewes, and put the stuff in the Coffyns, and couer the coffyns with the same paaste, and fry hem in goode oyle as thou doest risshshewes, and serue hem forthe hote in the same maner.

Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery-Books (England, 1430)

vij - Chawettys. Take buttys of Vele, and mynce hem smal, or Porke, and put on a potte; take Wyne, and caste ther-to pouder of Gyngere, Pepir, and Safroun, and Salt, and a lytel verthous, (Note: verjuice) and do hem in a cofyn with 3olkys of Eyroun, and kutte Datys and Roysonys of Coraunce, Clowys, Mace3, and then ceuere thin cofyn, and lat it bake tyl it be y-now.

A Noble boke off cookry ffor a prynce houssolde or eny other estately houssolde (Noble Boke 1480)

To mak chewettes of beef tak beef and cutt it smalle and do ther to pouder of guinger clowes and other good poudurs grapes vergius saffron and salt and toile them welle to gedure put chekins chopped in coffins and yolks of eggs brok smale and bak them and serue them.

Thomas Awkbarow's Recipes (MS Harley 5401) (England, 15th century) [based on a concordance]

Chewets. Recipe þe draghtis of capons or of hennes & shop þam small. Take & cast powdyr of gynger & cloes, pepyr & salt, & put þam all in a lityll cofyn & close it abowne, & fry hym in fresh grece, & serrof þam forth .ij. in a dysch.

Thomas Awkbarow's Recipes (MS Harley 5401) (England, 15th century) [based on a concordance]

Chewetys. Make smale cofyns not so mykyll as penypines, & take fayre egg зolks tryed, & lay þam in a cofyn .iij. or .iiij. rawe; & take fayre mary. When it is perbolid in þe boynes take it oute & lay it in gobits in a cofyn, & take a litil sugur & salt & cast þerin, & take a lid & cover it, & fry þam in fresh grece: & loke þi fyr be noght to hote; & serof it forth .iij. in a dysh.

A Proper New Boke of Cookery, 1545

Chewettes of Beef To make chewettes of beef tak beef and cutt it smalle and do ther to pouder of guinger clowes and other good poudurs grapes vergius saffron and salt and toile them welle to gedure put chekins chopped in coffins and yolks of eggs broke smale and bak them and serue them.

The Good Huswifes Handmaide for the Kitchin 1594 (The Good Huswifes Jewell 1596, both by Thomas Dawson)

To make Oyster Chewets. TAKE a peck of Oisters, & wash them clean. Then shel them, and wash them in a colender faire and clean, then seeth them in faire water a litle, and when they bee sodden, strain the water from them, and cut them smal as pie meat, season them with a little pepper, a peniworth of Cloues and Mace, a peniworth of Sinamon and Ginger, a peniworth of Sugar, a litle Saffron and salt: then take a handfull of Corrans, sixe Dates minced small, and mingle them altogether. Then make your paste with a quantitie of fine flower, ten yolkes of Egges, a quantitie of Butter, with a litle Saffron and boyled water, then raise vp your Chewets, and put in the bottom of your Chewets a litle Butter, and cast vpon them Prunes, Dates, and Corrans, so close them and bake them: let not your Ouen be too hot, for they would haue but litle baking. Then drawe them, and put in euerie of them two spoonfuls of Uergious and butter, and so serue them in, etc.

A New Booke of Cookerie by John Murrell (Murrell 1615)

A delicate Chewit Parboyle a piece of a Legge of veal, and being cold, mince it with Beefe Suit, and Marrow, and an Apple or a couple of Wardens: when you haue minst it fine, put to a few parboyld Currins, sixe Dates minst, a piece of a preserued Orenge-pill minst, Marrow cut in little square pieces. Season all this with Pepper, Salt, Nutmeg, and a little Sugar: then put it into your Coffins, and so bake it. Before you close your Pye, sprinckle on a little Rosewater, and when they are baked shave on a little Sugar, and so serve it to the Table.