Pirate Salmagundi
A cold, colorful medley: chunks of salt meat and pickled fish, hard-boiled eggs, onions, hearts of palm, dried fruit and herbs, all drizzled with oil, vinegar and spices. You throw in whatever you have, stir, and the whole mess dips their spoons in.
A cold, colorful medley: chunks of salt meat and pickled fish, hard-boiled eggs, onions, hearts of palm, dried fruit and herbs, all drizzled with oil, vinegar and spices. You throw in whatever you have, stir, and the whole mess dips their spoons in.
Mate, bring your bowl and don't be fussy! On a good prize night, we empty the captured ship's hold: a bit of salt beef here, some herring there, hard-boiled eggs, onions, whatever fresh stuff we've pinched ashore, and hup, we stir it all with oil and vinegar. It's ugly as sin and good as freedom, and everyone digs in until the barrel's clean. Eat your fill, for tomorrow there may be only hardtack.
- •Salt meat (beef or pork from a barrel), desalted — a good piece (protein base)
- •Pickled herring or anchovies — a few (salty umami)
- •Hard-boiled eggs — as many as you like (garnish)
- •Onions — two or three (bite)
- •Hearts of palm seized ashore — a few (vegetable freshness)
- •Raisins — a handful (sweet touch)
- •Oil, vinegar, salt, pepper — to taste (dressing)
Pirate Salmagundi
A cold, colorful medley: chunks of salt meat and pickled fish, hard-boiled eggs, onions, hearts of palm, dried fruit and herbs, all drizzled with oil, vinegar and spices. You throw in whatever you have, stir, and the whole mess dips their spoons in.
Why this dish? Salmagundi is THE attested dish of Caribbean pirate crews: a great jumble of meats, fish, and pickled eggs served on prize nights, when a boarding had filled the hold with fresh provisions. For Rackham's band, scouring the coasts of Jamaica, it was the feast of regained luck.
Mate, bring your bowl and don't be fussy! On a good prize night, we empty the captured ship's hold: a bit of salt beef here, some herring there, hard-boiled eggs, onions, whatever fresh stuff we've pinched ashore, and hup, we stir it all with oil and vinegar. It's ugly as sin and good as freedom, and everyone digs in until the barrel's clean. Eat your fill, for tomorrow there may be only hardtack.
Ingredients (period version)
- Salt meat (beef or pork from a barrel), desalted — a good piece (protein base)
- Pickled herring or anchovies — a few (salty umami)
- Hard-boiled eggs — as many as you like (garnish)
- Onions — two or three (bite)
- Hearts of palm seized ashore — a few (vegetable freshness)
- Raisins — a handful (sweet touch)
- Oil, vinegar, salt, pepper — to taste (dressing)
Ingredients
- Cold roast beef or ham — 250 g (protein base)
- Pickled herring or anchovy fillets — 6 to 8 (salty umami)
- Hard-boiled eggs — 4 (garnish)
- Red onion, thinly sliced — 1 (bite)
- Canned hearts of palm — 200 g (vegetable freshness)
- Raisins — 50 g (sweet touch)
- Olive oil + wine vinegar — 4 + 2 tbsp (vinaigrette)
- Salt, pepper, parsley or mint leaves — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Cut the cold meat and hearts of palm into large dice; peel and quarter the hard-boiled eggs.
- Finely slice the onion; rinse and drain the pickled fish.
- In a large shallow dish, layer all the ingredients generously, scatter raisins and herbs on top.
- Whisk oil, vinegar, salt and pepper; drizzle liberally.
- Toss roughly at the table just before sharing — salmagundi is eaten with a spoon, from the same bowl if you dare.
How it was made : On board, there was no fixed recipe: salmagundi changed with every prize depending on the loot in the hold. They'd put in turtle as well as pigeon, fruits seized ashore, stolen wine. The acid from vinegar and pickled fish helped preserve the ingredients for a few days under the scorching Caribbean sun.
The contemporary twist : Serve it as a grand sharing platter 'sea antipasti style', with wooden picks stuck in like tiny boarding sabers.
Sources : Charles Johnson, A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most notorious Pyrates (1724) · David Cordingly, Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates (1995)
Calico Jack · Charactorium