In an epigram, Martial complains about a meager dinner at Ponticus’ house. In fact, while Ponticus eats costly foods such as oysters, boleti, turbot, and a golden dove, Martial is served mussels, fungi suilli, small annular sea breams (sparuli), and a dead magpie in a cage. The cost of the boleti is often mentioned by Martial. In another epigram, we read that it is easy to send silver, gold, a cloak or a toga as a gift; it is harder to send boleti.
As a luxury item, boleti appear frequently in the Roman sources paired with oysters and other costly food, as recalled also by Seneca, who calls a voluptarium venenum the boleti, a voluptuary poison. It is unclear exactly what boleti are, but in the sources we find different kinds of mushrooms: Pliny, for example, writes about fungi, boleti, and suilli; in De Re Coquinaria we also find fungi farnei, not better identified.
According to Pliny, both boleti and suilli grow near the roots of the oak tree and are gulae novissima inritamenta, very new stimulation for the palate. It is difficult to interpret this passage, whether Pliny means that the consumption of mushrooms is new in his time or they are a new culinary trend in Rome, but the second option appears more plausible. In another passage, Pliny writes that the suilli are dried and imported from Bythinia.
From Martial’s epigram, it looks like that fungi suilli are less appreciated than the expensive boleti, which are probably one or more varieties of porcini or other prized mushrooms belonging to the Boletaceae family. For this reason, taking inspiration from Martial’s poem, we adapted a recipe from De Re Coquinaria to make it suitable for plebeians, using low-value mushrooms related to boleti and substituting the precious olive oil with oleum raphaninum, which is radish-seed oil, and the garum with muria. Oleum raphaninum was an inexpensive oil, as we can find in Diocletian’s Edict of Maximum Prices, also mentioned in Pliny’s Naturalis Historia. Muria, instead, was a cheap fish sauce obtained by salting fish, less prized than garum, similar to our traditional colatura di alici.
If you prefer to follow the instructions of De Re Coquinaria, we recommend using porcini, garum, and extra virgin olive oil. For a good balance, the honey must be added in a very small quantity. In this case, use only the stalks, because for the caps, the author suggests another method: dress them only with garum or salt. Other recipes for mushrooms in De Re Coquinaria include, for example, oenogarum (a mixture of garum and wine) with pepper or salt, oil, wine, and cilantro.
For an excellent plebeian meal, we recommend pairing these mushrooms with bread with sesame and must or a puls, accompanied by posca. For a meal suitable for the rich, we suggest pork stewed in wine, beef skewers, or pork stuffed with ancient pasta.
For more information about ancient cuisine, we suggest reading our book Ancient Roman Cooking. Ingredients, Recipes, Sources. Moreover, the full translation of De Re Coquinaria is available on Patreon, with further translations and articles on ancient and medieval cooking.
To know more about the transition between ancient and medieval cooking, check out our translation, commentary, and glossary of a beautiful 6th-century source, De Observatione Ciborum, written by the physician Anthimus to the king of the Franks Theuderic; if you are interested in late-medieval cuisine, we recommend Libro de la Cocina. Medieval Tuscan Recipes and Registrum Coquine. A medieval cookbook. For vegetable recipes from the Antiquity to the beginning of the Modern Era, we recommend Early Italian Recipes. Vegetables, fruit, herbs, and flowers. To learn about the use of cereals throughout history, read Early Italian Recipes. Cereals, bread, pasta, and pies.
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Ingredients
mixed mushrooms
spices (pepper, lovage)
oil
muria
honey
Method
Clean and cut the mushroom. Grind the spices in the mortar, adding oil, muria and just a little honey. Cook the mushrooms with a little water. When they are almost done, add the sauce and cook for another couple of minutes. Remember that the various kinds of mushrooms may require different cooking times.
Original text
Boletos aliter: thyrsos eorum concisos in patellam novam perfundis, addito pipere, ligustico, modico melle. Liquamine temperabis. Oleum modice.
Translation
Another recipe for boleti. Cut their stems and put them in a new pan with pepper, lovage, and a little honey. Dilute with garum. [Add] a little oil.
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Early Italian Recipes. Cereals, bread, pasta, and pies
Libro de la Cocina by Anonimo Toscano. Medieval Tuscan Recipes
Early Italian Recipes. Vegetables, fruit, herbs, and flowers
De Observatione Ciborum by Anthimus. Early-medieval recipes at the court of the Franks.
Registrum Coquine by Johannes Bockenheim. A medieval cookbook
Ancient Roman Cooking. Ingredients, Sources, Recipes
Translations of Historical Sources
De Agri Cultura by Cato – parts 1-2 (2nd century BCE)
De Re Coquinaria by Apicius (Ancient Rome)
Apicii Excerpta by Vinidarius (5th or 6th century)
De Observatione Ciborum by Anthimus (6th century)
Appendicula de Condituris Variis by Johannes Damascenus (8th or 9th century)
De Flore Dietarum (11th century)
Tractatus de Modo Preparandi et Condiendi Omnia Cibaria (13th or 14th century)
Liber de Coquina – parts 1-3 (14th century)
Enseignemenz (14th century)
Opusculum de Saporibus by Mainus de Maineris (14th century)
Libro de la Cocina by Anonimo Toscano (14th century)
Anonimo Veneziano (14th century)
Registrum Coquine by Johannes von Bockenheim (15th century)
Libro de Arte Coquinaria by Maestro Martino – parts 1-5 (15th century)
Recipes
Lixula Sabina
Frittata with Quinces – Patina de Cydoneis
Patina Cotidiana – The Roman Ancestor of Lasagna
Moustakia Sesamata – Bread Rolls with Must and Sesame
Plebeian’s Mushrooms
Beef Skewers
Stuffed Chard
Shrimp
Frittata with Peas – Conchicla Commodiana
Tuna
Pork Stew with Red Wine
Chicken with Green Sauce
Pork Chops – Ofellae
Chicken with Dill – Pullus Anethatus
Religious Offering to Mars Silvanus
Rabbit
Gourds – Gustum de Cucurbitis
Roast Pheasant
Tyropatina – Honey Pudding
Pork Shank with Apician Sauce
The Diet of the Legionaries – Soup with Mutton and Beans
Chicken with Dill
Beef Roast with Quinces
Chard with Mustard
Religious Offering to Carna – Puls Fabacia
Pork Stuffed with Pasta – Porcellus Tractomelinus
Gilt-Head Sea Bream
Moretum – A Religious Offering to Cybele
Patina Versatilis
Aristophanes’ Roasted Birds
Pork Roast with Myrtle Berries
Cabbage Rolls
Pork Collar
Chicken with Taro
Honey and Millet Libum
Ham in Crust
Encytum
The diet of the ancient Germans
The diet of the Franks
Kandaulos
Wild Boar
Hypotrimma
Oysters and Clams
Peas
Ancient Sicilian Sea Bass
Pork Roast and Lentils with Sumac
Scampi
Cuttlefish and Eggs
Gustum de Praecoquis – Appetizer with Apricots
Octopus and Cucumber Salad
Copadia Agnina – Lamb Stew
Apothermum – Spelt Cakes
Pullus Parthicus – Roast Chicken
Tisana Barrica – Barley Soup
Beef Roast and Shallots
Staitites – Ancient Greek Sweet
Chicken Meatballs and Mashed Peas
Sweet Fritters – Dulcia Domestica
Columella’s Moretum and Hapalos Artos
Ancient Roman Frittata
A Saturnalia Recipe – Roast with Saffron Sauce
Muria – Ancestor of Colatura di Alici
Globi – Ancient Roman Sweet
The Diet of the Roman Legionaries – Buccellatum, Lardum, and Posca
How to make garum
Fig Sweet
Ancient Roman Gourd and Eggs
Ofella – Ancient Roman Steak
Fruit salads – Melon and Peaches
Isicia Marina – Shrimp Cakes and Cucumber Salad
Sala Cattabia – Snow and Posca
Copadia – Beef Stew
Puls Punica – Phoenician Dessert
Farcimina – Spelt and Meat Sausages
Ova Spongia ex Lacte – Sweet Omelettes
Flatbread and Chickpea Soup
Chicken stew
Salted Fish with Arugula Sauce
Savillum – Cheesecake
Pasta and Meatballs – Minutal Terentinum
Venison Stew with Spelt Puls
Veal with Allec Sauce – Ius in Elixam Allecatum
Isicia Omentata – Meatballs Wrapped in Caul Fat
Placenta – Honey Cheesecake
Pork Laureate – Porcellum Laureatum
Mashed Chestnuts
Poppy Seed Bread with Ancient Dry Yeast
Cured Olives and Epityrum
Historical Italian Cooking 