The Classical Cookbook

by Andrew Dalby, Sally Grainger

The daily life of classical Greece and Rome, although separated from us by 2000 years, can be recreated in almost photographic detail. The Classical Cookbook is the first book of its kind, exploring the daily culture of the Mediterranean through the center of its social life--food and drink.
Combining narrative texts and recipes, authors Dalby and Grainger draw on a mass of fascinating resources to describe household life for different social groups and occasions. Each chapter provides a historical outline, with translations of the original recipes followed by versions for the modern
cook. The book is illustrated throughout with delightful scenes of food, hunters, and revelers from wall paintings, mosaics, and Greek vases. And the array of delicacies, from Sweet Wine Scones to Chicken Stuffed with Olives to Honey Nut Cake, is sure to tempt any connoisseur.

Genres: History, Cookbooks, Food, Nonfiction, Cooking, Classics, Culinary

144 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1996

About the author

Andrew Dalby (born Liverpool, 1947) is an English linguist, translator and historian who most often writes about food history.

Dalby studied at the Bristol Grammar School, where he learned some Latin, French and Greek; then at the University of Cambridge. There he studied Latin and Greek at first, afterwards Romance languages and linguistics. He earned a bachelor's degree in 1970. Dalby then worked for fifteen years at Cambridge University Library, eventually specializing in Southern Asia. He gained familiarity with some other languages because of his work there, where he had to work with foreign serials and afterwards with South and Southeast Asian materials. In 1982 and 1983 he collaborated with Sao Saimong in cataloguing the Scott Collection of manuscripts and documents from Burma (especially the Shan States) and Indochina; He was later to publish a short biography of the colonial civil servant and explorer J. G. Scott, who formed the collection.[1] To help him with this task, he took classes in Cambridge again in Sanskrit, Hindi and Pali and in London in Burmese and Thai.

Reviews

[Rachel Hartman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Io Saturnalia!

We've owned this book for years, but I am reminded of it in particular today while I cook our Saturnalia feast out of it.

I love this book to death, I really do, but I will just say the recipes are occasionally tricky. It would get five stars as an educational read, but just three as an actual cookbook. Some of the recipes are obvious, easy, and wonderful ("Fish in a Coriander Crust" comes to mind); some, such as the barley rolls I'm making today, require substantial interpretation on the part of the cook. This is our fourth year making these barley rolls, and I believe I finally have the recipe modified to the point where we won't break our teeth on the damn things.

Now obviously, ancient cooks didn't write down recipes the way we do today, so the author is already a step or two into interpretation, just by trying to figure out what the ancient cooks meant and DID. But it's totally worth it to go get some of the odder ingredients - asafoetida (available at Indian groceries), rue and catmint (available at the local hippie natural medicine shop), passum (raisin wine, hard to find), and garum (ok, we just use Thai fish sauce). These are flavours that the western palate doesn't experience often, and it's a shame really that they've fallen out of favour, because they're interesting.

Salve! And a happy Saturnalia to you and yours!

[Nathan "N.R." Gaddis]

Had dinner out of here last night. A smashing success!

Something tuna steak
something lentils
something cabbage
some barley cakes (upgrade'd to wheat)
pungent beyond belief garlic=cheese spread
a little olive compote=type thing
something we'll just call Classical honey donuts.

There's also a pretty sweet cheese=cake recipe in here.

[Pattie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always an enjoyable read, the authors are very conversational and adept at drawing you in. Sally has started a youtube channel *A taste of the ancient world* so it's an additional level of enjoyment to see her cooking recipes discussed in the book.

I'm not a purist when it comes to recipe redaction, so I appreciate being able to actually cook the recipes in this delightful book...which I have done, so I know they work. ;-)

[Viktoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Засега пробвах само т.нар. „delian sweets“ – нещо като мини мекици/бухти, поръсени с мед и маково семе, които често са били и ритуално дарявани на различни божества: останах приятно изненадана. Повечето рецепти, обаче, са неща, които със сигурност не мога дори да си представя да опитам като варено пиле, пълно с маслини 🫣

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars for the sheer amount of effort that clearly went into this: this is the rare cookbook that goes beyond Apicius. Until I can plant lovage and rue in my own garden, however, I shall have to admire these recipes from afar.

[Luis Sanchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well if one enjoys rustic lentils ans barely , and fermented fish sauces of ancient times, various forms of stews and such its interesting it does give perspective to the culinary arts of ancient times if that is your interest.

[Mills College Library]

641.59495 D137 2012

[Lenka · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book on everyday life in ancient Greece and Rome with an interesting selection of recipes.

[Annette McIntyre · Rating 4 out of 5]

A range of really interesting recipes from Greece and Rome during the classical period, with information about the time and the author of the original recipes with adaptations for modern cooks.

[Marissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great balance of source material and practicable, appealing, modernized translations.

[Julie Isenhower · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Classical Cookbook is not quite like any book I’ve ever read. Of course it doesn’t tell a chronological story like a true novel, but it doesn’t just list recipes like a regular cook book either. I enjoy and appreciate the format with which Sally Grainger and Andrew Dalby wrote it. They will have a translation of an ancient Greek or Roman recipe and also conveniently give its contemporary equivalent or substitute certain rare ingredients for ones that can be commonly found. But then they go further to tell what social classes would have eaten this food (slaves, soldiers, kings, the merchant class, ect.), and whether it was part of everyday live or more of a delicacy. It makes the history seem more real and less like a story when we can see how similar the ancient Greek and Romans were to us today. They ate and had festivals and celebrated as well. It’s surprising to see how similar our actual food is to theirs. They had things like cheesecake and wine, just like we do. In addition to all this, there are large pictures showing scenes from the time depicting banquets and people eating, fishing, ect. It’s refreshing and interesting to get a peek into the daily lives of the ancient Greek and Romans via food.

[dejah_thoris · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, you want to know about ancient Greek or Roman cooking but don't want to read another, more detailed book by Dalby? Or maybe you want to see if you can actually make some of the recipes quoted in one of the other books? The Classical Cookbook is the book for you! Subdivided roughly by era and geography each chapter begins with a brief food history that is followed by several recipes adapted from classic texts each of which is quoted above its corresponding adaptation. Most of the recipes appear easy to use once you obtain the ingredients and there is a separate introduction explaining how to procure various exotic (to us) herbs and spices. And the recipes represent the variety of ancient Greek and Roman cuisine from main courses to desserts. Plus, you get an interesting sense of how difficult it is to adapt an ancient recipe, usually a list of ingredients with brief indications of cooking methods, to a modern, reproducible equivalent from his co-author's discussions at the start of each one regarding the process. So, if you're interested in food history and actually cooking from ancient recipes, read Dalby's most accessible (cook)book on the subject.

[Sidsel Pedersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really should make a shelf for historical cookbooks as I do have quite a few now.

This was excellent. I have not tried any of the recipes yet, or I would have scored it higher. It reads very well as a history book on Anicent food history as well as a cook book. The chapter introductions along with the recipe introductions paints a vivid picture of the foods eaten. Many of the recipes are accompanied by quotes from ancient texts and cookbooks which half the entertainment.

If you are interested in ancient everyday history or a reenactor I think this is well worth your time.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent historic cook book. Solid history. Author is careful with the reconstructions, explaining what is known, and what is inferred, for each recipe. It focuses primarily on techniques and recipes that originated in ancient Greece and passed on to ancent Rome.

[Kouyoum · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book to reat !