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Pisam Farsilem (Pressed Peas)
Pisam Farsilem (Pressed Peas) is a traditional Ancient Roman recipe for a classic layered dish of peas, forcemeats, bird meats, chicken and sausages that's cooked until set and served with a sauce of egg whites, pepper, nuts, honey, wine and stock. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Ancient Roman version of: Pressed Peas (Pisam Farsilem).
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
130 minutes
Total Time:
150 minutes
Serves:
4
Rating: 
Tags : Sauce RecipesPork RecipesChicken RecipesVegetable RecipesBaking RecipesBean RecipesAncient Roman Recipes
Original Recipe
Pisam farsilem: coques. cui oleum mittis. <accipies> abdomen, et mittis in caccabum liquamen et porrum capitatum, coriandrum viridem. imponis ut coquatur. isicia minuta facies quadrata, et coques simul turdos vel aucellas vel de pullo conciso et cerebella prope cocta cum iuscello coques. lucanicas assas, petasonem elixas, porros ex aqua coques, nucleorum heminam frigis. teres piper, ligusticum, origanum, gingiber, ius abdominis fundis, lias. angularem accipies, qui versari potest, et omentis tegis. oleo perfundis, deinde nucleos aspargis et supra pisam mittis ut tegas fundum angularis, et sic componis supra petasonis pulpas, porros, lucanicas concisas. iterum pisam supermittis. item alternis aptabis obsonia, quousque impleatur angularis. novissime pisam mittis, ut intus omnia contineat. coques in furno vel lento igni imponis, ut ducat ad se deorsum. ova dura facies, vitella eicies, in mortario mittis cum pipere albo, nucleis, melle, vino candido et liquamine modico. teres et mittis in vas ut ferveat. cum ferbuerit, pisam mittis in lancem, et hoc iure perfundis. hoc ius candidum appellatur.
Translation
Pressed Peas: Boil the peas, add olive oil. Take a belly [of pork, dice] and put into a saucepan with stock, the heads of leeks and green coriander. Simmer [to cook]. Make small cubes of forcemeat and cook in stock with thrushes, meats, or other small birds or chicken slices, and brains previously parboiled in stock. Roast Lucanian sausages, boil a leg of pork, cook leeks in water and roast 200g of nuts. pound pepper, lovage, oregano and ginger [in a mortar]. Pour over these stock from the belly of pork and stir. Take a pan with straight edges, one that can be inverted, and cover [the base] with caul fat. Grease with olive oil and then sprinkle pine-nuts [on top]. Add peas over this, so that the base of the pan is covered. Over this arrange the pork, leeks and the sliced Lucanian sausage. Put peas on top and cover these alternately with layers of the prepared meats. Continue until the vessel is full. Finally, put a layer of peas on top so that all the ingredients are contained within. Cook in the oven over a slow fire so that the dish cooks until set. In a mortar, put hard-boiled eggs, having first removed the yolks, white pepper, nuts, honey, white wine, and a little stock. Mix these together and put them in a saucepan until they boil. Turn over the pressed peas onto a serving dish and pour the sauce over the top. This is called white sauce.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
350g fresh (or frozen) garden peas
olive oil
500g belly pork, cubed
120ml stock
2 leeks, chopped
small bunch of
coriander, chopped
200g
poultry forcemeats
120g chicken breasts or thighs, sliced
225g calf's brains (or tinned corned beef)
500ml chicken stock
225g
Lucanian sausage
150g pine nuts (or chopped
almonds or chopped hazelnuts)
caul fat
For the Sauce:
1 tsp ground pepper
1 tbsp
lovage seeds (or celery seeds)
1 1/2 tsp dried
oregano, crumbled
1/2 tsp ground
ginger
For the White Sauce:
whites from 2 hard-boiled eggs, finely minced
1/8 tsp ground
white pepper
30g ground almonds
1 tbsp honey
250ml white wine
50ml liquamen
550ml chicken stock
Method:
Cook the peas in lightly-salted water for about 8 minutes, or until just done. Drain and mix with a little olive oil to moisten then set aside. In the meantime, combine the pork, leeks and coriander in a pan with 120ml stock, bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes, or until the meat is done then take of the heat and set aside. Combine the forcemeats, chicken meat and brains in a separate pan, pour over the 500ml chicken stock, bring to a simmer, cover the pan and cook for about 40 minutes, or until they are all cooked through. Take off the heat and set aside. Toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan, or in the oven until golden then turn into a bowl and set aside.
Pound together the pepper, lovage (or celery) seeds, oregano and ginger in a mortar. Mix with 60ml of the stock from the pork, pour into a pan, bring to a boil then take off the heat and set aside.
Take a deep, straight-sided casserole dish and oil thoroughly. Line with caul fat then pour the toasted nuts into the base and sprinkle over a little of the sauce, made above. Cover with a layer of peas then add a layer of the diced pork, cooked leeks and sliced Lucanian sausages. Sprinkle a little of the sauce over this and add another layer of peas. Cover with a layer of forcemeat, chicken and brains (chop the brains) then add a final layer of peas and drizzle the remaining sauce over the top. Transfer to an oven pre-heated to 160°C and cook for about 40 minutes, or until heated through and set.
Meanwhile, prepare the white sauce. Blend together the minced egg whites, white pepper, ground almonds, honey, white wine and almonds in a pan. Whisk in the chicken stock then bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes, or until thickened.
To serve, invert the baked layered mixture carefully onto a serving plate. Pour over the white sauce and 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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