Repetita consuetudo monstravit expeditionis tempore buccellatum ac panem, vinum quoque atque acetum, sed et lardum, carnem vervecinam etiam milites nostros ita solere percipere: biduo buccellatum. tertio die panem: uno die vinum, alio die acetum: uno die lardum, biduo carnem vervecinam.”
“The renown custom prescribes in time of military expeditions [to give] buccellatum and bread, wine and vinegar [a common name for posca], but our troops are used to receive also lardo [cured pork fatback] and mutton: two days buccellatum and the third day bread; one day wine and the second day vinegar; one day lardo, two days mutton.”
This text is part of the Justinian’s Codex Iuris Civilis, the most important ancient Roman source of laws, but this one in particular is written by Emperor Constantius in the year 360. It is important to notice that the author insists on the habit: despite being written in the 4th century, his recommendations refer to a common, old custom.
Vegetius (lived between the 4th and the 5th century), in his Epitoma Rei Militaris, writes that the legionaries need to be provided with simple food and lists among their provisions wheat, vinegar, wine, and salt.
In the Roman and Byzantine sources, there are fragmentary information about the diet of the army. This week we are collecting some of them to recreate a few foods eaten by the legionaries: buccellatum, laridum (or lardum, cured pork fatback), and posca, all mentioned in the source we translated above. We wrote a few months ago about posca in this article. In this case, we followed the directions of Dioscorides for a posca helpful for the stomach and queasiness, which is also particularly good: vinegar diluted in water with a bit of pennyroyal, which you can substitute with mint.
In the future, we will prepare other recipes suitable for the legionaries.
Buccellatum is the typical biscuit of the army, prepared with wheat flour and cooked two times until completely dry to keep it for a long time. According to Zonaras (12th century), it is a ring-shaped bread roll. The small size of the buccellatum is confirmed by the recipe written by the Byzantine physician Aetius of Amida (lived between the 5th and the 6th century), but in this case the author is referring to a medicinal version, not to the army’s buccellatum. In any case, the recipe for his boukellos katharticos is interesting, because it includes the use of sourdough (in the text, yeast obtained from durum-wheat flour) and the suggestion of cooking the bread under a dome, the Greek clibanus or Roman testum. The bread is salted with a small amount of an oil and garum mixture. We chose to use salt instead, which was part of the rations of the army according to Vegetius.
Below, you will find the methods, the video with English and Italian subtitles, and the Latin recipe for lardo from De Re Coquinaria, the cookbook conventionally attributed to Apicius, with our translation. Enjoy!
If you want to know more about historical bread, read our book Early Italian Recipes. Cereals, bread, pasta, and pies, where you will find historical information about cereals and their preparations from the Antiquity to the end of the Renaissance, with 114 recipes for pasta, bread, pizza, pies, and more, newly translated and explained. For more information about ancient cuisine, read 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 learn 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. If you are interested in recipes for vegetables from the Antiquity to the beginning of the Modern Era in Early Italian Recipes. Vegetables, fruit, herbs, and flowers available in English and Italian.
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BUCCELLATUM
Ingredients
400 gr re-milled durum semolina
sourdough
salt
Method
Knead the flour with the sourdough, two pinches of salt, and warm water.. Once you have obtained a smooth consistency, let the dough rest overnight. Divide it into small pieces, shaping rings of dough. Let them rest for half an hour, then bake them under the testum or in the oven for 30 minutes. Let them cool, then bake them again for 10-15 minutes.
Note about the ingredients
Sourdough was a common leavener in ancient Rome and Greece. Pliny describes extensively the methods used at his time to prepare it. You find information about it in this article.
LARDO (Apicius)
Ingredients
lardo
dry or fresh dill
olive oil
salt
Method
Simmer the lardo for 15 minutes with dill, then discard the water. Slice the lardo and dress it with a bit of olive oil, sprinkling it with a pinch of salt.
Original text
Laridi coctura: tectum aqua cum multo anetho coques, oleum modicum destillabis et modicum salis.
Translation
Cooking of lardo: cook it immersed in water with a lot of dill, sprinkling it with a bit of olive oil and salt.
Note about the ingredients
In the Antiquity and early Middle Ages, lardo was always cooked. The habit to eat it raw was typical of Franks, writes the Byzantine physician Anthimus in the 6th century, but the best way to prepare lardo is by simmering it. Other common methods of cooking were roasting on charcoal and fry it, but Anthimus considers the latter way unhealthy. You find more information about lardo in ancient Rome and early Middle Ages on Patreon.
Writing about dill, Apicius means the herb: when he intends to use the seeds of anethum, he specifies it. To prepare this recipe, the legionaries would use either dry dill or a fresh wild herb, if they found it.
POSCA (Dioscorides)
Ingredients
vinegar
water
dry or fresh pennyroyal
Method
Mix seven parts of water and one of vinegar, adding a bit of pennyroyal or mint.
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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 – first part (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 – first part (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 1-4 (15th century)
Recipes
Plebeian 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 