L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 2, 2019 www.italoamericano.org 10 L'Italo-Americano B eing a chef in the Renaissance wasn't as you would imag- ine: restaurants as we know them today didn't exist and the only people who could afford to pay someone to cook for them were kings, lords and Popes. And while Renaissance cuisine has a bit of a niche following, with cook- books and websites dedicated to it, there's an uncharacteristic paucity of words about the men who made all that culinary grandeur possible. That's strange, if you think that thanks to their geniality — and possibly a good dose of luck — delicacies such as egg and cream based gelato, biancoman- giare and even panettone were invented. Renaissance nobility had a penchant for flamboyancy on the table: think of full roasted wild boars sitting on enormous silver platters, or peacocks decorated with their own feathers, just to give you an idea. Add pots of rose water to delicately cleanse your fingers between one dish and the other and, voilà! A per- fect dinner party Renaissance style is served. Then as today, we learn through the words of Platina in the De Honesta Voluptate et Valetudine, there were superstar chefs. Or better, there was one superstar chef, Maestro Martino da Como. He was the perfect cook and, Platina assured us all, the one who brought together Medieval tradition and an elegant research for balance that certainly attracted the Humanists of the time. Elegance and balance? What about the wild boars and pea- cocks? Well, Platina wrote in the 15th century and in the 16th things were to change a little. In the 1500s, chefs become more independent and creative, they tend to follow less pre-existing models and more their own cre- ative inspiration: they didn't change much since then, if you think about it. What has changed, however, is the way the worked and where. While today's most popular chefs are professionals in charge of their own businesses, the Gordon Ramsays and Mas- simo Botturas of the Renais- sance were kings and Popes' employees: they ran their kitchens, prepared their banquets and, we can bet, they probably also got reprimanded every now and then, if their creations were considered subpar. The interesting thing, howev- er, is that in the Renaissance Gor- don and Massimo could have worked together in the same kitchen, something unlikely to happen nowadays: indeed, a king or a Pope's kitchen would have more than one head chef, respon- sible of managing work and organizing dishes on different weeks. All had the same authori- ty and could receive help from one another during the weeks they were in charge. Coming to the knitty-gritty of their lifestyle, it appears they actually were treated quite well; their lord had the duty to provide new clothes to them at least once a year, they had the right to a pri- vate bedroom with a bed (not necessarily a given for other workers of the palace, who may sleep on hay stashes), candles and wood for the fire during the cold season, in the same quantity gentiluomini (gentlemen, or members of the bourgeoisie) were entitled to. When they were hungry, they could certainly eat a lot: they had right to 1 kg (a bit more than 2 pounds) of bread and almost three liters of wine per day, of the same quality used for gentiluomi- ni again. And what about meat, cheese and other foodstuff? Unfortunately, sources are not as clear about that, however, we know that in the most important courts of Europe head chefs were allowed about 2 pounds of meat (veal or hen, depending on what was on the menu for their lord on that day). This was, of course, for regular days: in what we call in Italian giorni di magro, that is, those days when meat can- not be eaten in respect to religious precepts, chefs would receive 8 eggs per day, in substitution of meat. During Lent, they were given 2 and half pounds of fish instead. Great chefs, working in impor- tant courts, then, had a pretty nice life, at least when it comes to food and accommodation: of course, their job must have been as exhausting as it is today, so let's say they quite deserved it. But Renaissance lords were generous also with their helpers, our mod- ern day kitchen staff, and to pri- vate bakers. They also had the right to their own room and beds and received the same amount of bread and wine of their boss, even if the quality of the wine wasn't the same. 1 pound and a half of meat, fish — or 6 eggs — a day were also guaranteed. Apparently, lords were quite eager to treat chefs, cooks and the rest of their kitchen team well, so that they would be faithful and, most importantly, they could endure the hard work in the kitchen. Even if an employee, a lord's head chef had complete freedom when it came to hiring — and fir- ing — staff for his kitchen, and no interference from other staff members of similar importance was accepted. Last, but not least, a head chef had to be free and able to travel, and his lord had the duty to make sure he could do so. Why? Quite simply, because at the time nobil- ity moved often from a palace to another, a bit like Elizabeth II does today when she moves from Buckingham Palace to Scotland for the Summer. Of course, it was expected that the head chef and his staff would follow, and they had to do so in comfort and with ease, so they were all entitled to their own horse, walking shoes and everything one may have needed to cook on the go. And so, they were quite important, our chefs of the Renaissance: they were well paid, they were well fed and very much respected. I wonder if some of them, beside the mentioned Mar- tino da Como, ever reached superstar status: likely yes, but their names may have got lost in the spires of time. FRANCESCA BEZZONE LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE A colorful Renaissance banquet. In those times, chefs at court were well respected A day in the life of … A Renaissance chef

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