Powder-forte (poudre forte) was a medieval spice mix similar to poudre douce, but often incorporating more pungent flavors like pepper.[1] Spice mixes like powder-forte were a common ingredient in the recorded recipes of medieval cuisine, often used in combination with foods that are not heavily spiced in modern preparations. One example is a recipe for cherries, washed clean with wine and filtered through a cloth, then heated with "white grease" and rice flour in a pot until stiff. To this cherry mixture, the cook would add honey, vinegar, egg yolk and "strong powder" - in this case, a mix of cinnamon and cypress root.[2] Along with poudre douce, poudre fine and poudre lombard it is one of four medieval spice mixtures found throughout an assortment of medieval cookery manuscripts.[3]

References

  1. ^ Adamson, Melitta Weiss (2004). Food in Medieval Times. Greenwood. p. 66. ISBN 9780313321474.
  2. ^ Mead, William Edward (1931). The English Medieval Feast. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780429514203.
  3. ^ The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford University Press. 2014. p. 766. ISBN 978-0-19-967733-7.


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