Roggenmus aux poireaux (rye porridge with leeks)
A thick porridge of rye flour bound with broth, flavored with leeks and a few smoked bacon bits. It is the daily meal that sustains the body during long workshop days.
A thick porridge of rye flour bound with broth, flavored with leeks and a few smoked bacon bits. It is the daily meal that sustains the body during long workshop days.
You see, my friend, in Mainz we do not begin work on an empty stomach. My maid would put the rye flour to swell in the broth at daybreak, and throw in leeks from the garden and a bit of last year's bacon. When the journeymen smelled that rising from the hearth, believe me, they forgot the cold of the lead matrices. A good spoonful of this *Mus*, and you hold until vespers without weakening.
- •Rye flour — two handfuls per bowl (thickener and base)
- •Meat or bone broth — enough to cover (cooking liquid)
- •Leeks — a few (garden vegetable)
- •Smoked bacon — a piece (fat and smoky flavor)
- •Salt — to taste (seasoning)
Roggenmus aux poireaux (rye porridge with leeks)
A thick porridge of rye flour bound with broth, flavored with leeks and a few smoked bacon bits. It is the daily meal that sustains the body during long workshop days.
Why this dish? Rye is the grain of both poor and Rhenish bourgeois, and Gutenberg's printing workshop, where they worked from dawn to night, demanded hearty and cheap food that could be simmered on the hearth.
You see, my friend, in Mainz we do not begin work on an empty stomach. My maid would put the rye flour to swell in the broth at daybreak, and throw in leeks from the garden and a bit of last year's bacon. When the journeymen smelled that rising from the hearth, believe me, they forgot the cold of the lead matrices. A good spoonful of this *Mus*, and you hold until vespers without weakening.
Ingredients (period version)
- Rye flour — two handfuls per bowl (thickener and base)
- Meat or bone broth — enough to cover (cooking liquid)
- Leeks — a few (garden vegetable)
- Smoked bacon — a piece (fat and smoky flavor)
- Salt — to taste (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Whole rye flour — 120 g (thickener and base)
- Chicken or beef broth — 1 liter (cooking liquid)
- Leeks — 2 medium (vegetable)
- Smoked bacon lardons — 100 g (fat and smoky flavor)
- Salt — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Finely slice the leeks (white and tender green) and sweat them with the bacon lardons in a casserole, without browning.
- Pour in the cold broth and gradually whisk in the rye flour to avoid lumps.
- Bring to a simmer and let thicken over low heat for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring often, until a creamy porridge is obtained.
- Season with salt, serve piping hot in a bowl with a slice of rye bread.
How it was made : *Mus* (cereal porridge) was the daily food of the northern Empire long before the potato arrived from America. Rye, oats, or barley were used depending on the region and budget. Leeks and cabbage were the quintessential winter vegetables of Rhenish gardens.
The contemporary twist : Served in a deep bowl with a veil of toasted rye croutons and a turn of the pepper mill, the old workshop porridge becomes a very contemporary winter comfort food.
Gutenberg · Charactorium