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Aliter Bulbos (Bulbs, Another Way II)
Aliter Bulbos (Bulbs, Another Way) is a traditional Ancient Roman recipe for a classic accompaniment of boiled baby onions served in a thyme, oregano and date sauce. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Ancient Roman version of: Bulbs, Another Way (Aliter Bulbos).
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
10 minutes
Total Time:
30 minutes
Serves:
4
Rating: 
Tags : Sauce RecipesVegetarian RecipesHerb RecipesVegetable RecipesAncient Roman Recipes
Original Recipe
Aliter: bulbos elixos in pultarium pressos, mittis thymum, origanum, mel, acetum, defritum, caryotam, liquamen et oleum modice. piper adspargis et inferes. [Varro: si quid de bulbis dixi, «in aquam qui Veneris ostium quaerunt», deinde ut legitimis nuptiis in cena ponuntur, sed et cum nucleis pineis aut cum erucae suco et pipere.]
Translation
Another Way: Take boiled bulbs, press them [to remove excess liquid], and put into a dish. Add thyme, oregano, honey, vinegar, defritum, dates, stock, and a little olive oil. Sprinkle with pepper and serve.
Modern Redaction
In Apicius, as is common in Roman cookery the term 'bulbos' really does refer to bulbs and these could be the bulbs of tulip, narcissus, and daffodil. These are the 'bulbs' that seem to be referred to by Apicius. . Columella and Pliny the Elder reported that the buds or shoots of reeds were sometime called “bulbs" and sometimes “eyes." Platina included the squill (scilla) and sea onion in the term. Apart from the onion, the other bulbs in these lists contain contain toxic glycosides and
CAN BE LETHAL. Only ever use onions in these recipes, DO NOT try the other bulb types. To keep with the 'bulbos' description use small or pickling onions.
Ingredients:
200g baby onions or shallots, peeled
For the Sauce:
1/2 tsp thyme, very finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried
oregano, crumbled
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tbsp liquamen (fish sauce)
60ml
defritum
2 tbsp
vegetable stock
4 tbsp dates, finely chopped
1 tsp olive oil
Method:
Peel the shallots then bring a pan of lightly-salted water to a boil. Add the shallots and boil for about 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain the shallots, squeeze out any excess liquid and place in a serving dish.
In the meantime, combine the thyme, oregano, honey, vinegar, liquamen, defritum, vegetable stock and dates in pan. Bring to a simmer and cook until the dates break down and the sauce thickens. Whisk in the olive oil and pour over the onions then serve.
Find more recipes from Apicius' De Re Coquinaria along with information on Apicius and his cookbook, all part of this site's Ancient Roman recipes collection.
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