Sumen (Sow's Belly) is a traditional Ancient Roman recipe for a classic dish of a pig's stomach that's boiled until tender, roasted to colour and served with a sauce flavoured with black pepper, lovage, stock, wine and passum. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Ancient Roman version of: Sow's Belly (Sumen).
<Sumen:> Sumen elixas, de cannis surclas sale adspargis et in furnum mittis vel in craticulam. subassas. teres piper ligusticum, liquamen, mero et passo, amulo obligas et sumen perfundis.
Translation
[Sow's Belly:] Boil the belly then bind it together with reeds. Sprinkle with salt then put in the oven or on the gridiron. Roast it a little. Mix pepper, lovage, stock, wine and passum. Thicken with starch and pour over the sow's belly.
Modern Redaction
Ingredients:
For the Tripe:
1 pig's stomach, cleaned
4 onions, halved
200ml milk
water
For the Sauce:
1/2 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
1/2 tsp lovage seeds (or celery seeds)
250ml stock
120ml white wine
4 tbsp passum
2 tsp cornflour (wheat starch would originally have been used), to thicken
Method:
Wash and clean the pig's belly and remove any fat. Place in a pan with the onions and milk then pour in enough water to cover the tripe by at least 3cm. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer then cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid and cook slowly for 4 hours, or until the tripe is completely tender.
Drain the tripe and place in a roasting tin. Transfer to an oven pre-heated to 200°C and roast for 10 minutes then turn over and roast for a further 10 minutes.
In the meantime, combine the black pepper and lovage (or celery) seeds in a mortar. Grind together then moisten with a little stock and wine. Turn into a pan then add the remainder of the stock, white wine and passum. Bring to a boil then whisk the cornflour with 2 tbsp water to a smooth slurry. Whisk this mixture into the sauce, reduce to a simmer and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened.
When done, slice the sow's stomach and pour over the sauce. Serve immediately.
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