Syrup of Simple Sikanjabin (Oxymel)

Syrup of Simple Sikanjabin (Oxymel)

An Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook of the 13th Century, Translated by Charles Perry

Original Recipe:

Take a ratl of strong vinegar and mix it with two ratls of sugar, and cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an ûqiya of this with three of hot water when fasting: it is beneficial for fevers of jaundice, and calms jaundice and cuts the thirst, since sikanjabîn syrup is beneficial in phlegmatic fevers: make it with six ûqiyas of sour vinegar for a ratl of honey and it is admirable.
...[gap: top third of this page has been cut off]...
... and a ratl of sugar; cook all this until it takes the consistency of syrup. Its benefit is to relax the bowels and cut the thirst and vomiting, and it is beneficial in bilious fevers.

 Redaction:

Ingredients:

450g strong vinegar
900g sugar
-or-
225g sour vinegar
450g honey

Combine ingredients and heat until the mixture has reduced and has taken the form of a syrup.  To serve, combine in a 3:1 ratio hot water to syrup.

Process:

Like so many period recipes, this required research into the measurements used.  Western University in London Ontario has done extensive research into medieval Islamic measurements. Their research is available online.  The ratl and uqiya are measurements of weight, which were predominantly used for measuring food items and commodities.  Several weights were reported for the Ratl.  It was approximately 300g in the 8th century, 437.5g between the 10th and 12th century, and 450g after the 12th century.  As the cookbook was published in the 13th century, I opted for the 12th century and later measure.  An uqiya is approximately 37.5g.
  Once I had measured the ingredients, I combined them in a pot on the stove and cooked them at a simmer allowing them to reduce to the correct consistency.

Notes:

Sugar:

Crystallized sugar was discovered by the time of the Imperial Guptas, around the 5th century CE. The Greek physician Pedanius Dioscorides in the 1st century CE described sugar in his medical treatise De Materia Medica, and Pliny the Elder, a 1st-century CE Roman, described sugar in his Natural History: "Sugar is made in Arabia as well, but Indian sugar is better. It is a kind of honey found in cane, white as gum, and it crunches between the teeth. It comes in lumps the size of a hazelnut. Sugar is used only for medical purposes." Crusaders brought sugar back to Europe after their campaigns in the Holy Land, where they encountered caravans carrying "sweet salt". Early in the 12th century, Venice acquired some villages near Tyre and set up estates to produce sugar for export to Europe.
From this information, one can extrapolate that granulated sugar can be used in this recipe.  However, since period sugar would most likely not be as refined as what is commercially available, I opted to use turbinado sugar, as it is minimally processed, in order to more closely match what would have been available in period. 

Vinegar:

According to Oxford English Dictionaries, The word vinegar arrived in Middle English from Old French (vyn egre; 'sour wine'), which in turn derives from Latin: vinum (wine) + acer (sour).  The recipe calls for strong vinegar but does not specify the type.  The recipe is Middle Eastern, and is still popular in modern day Iran.  Shiraz is one of the largest cities in IrDan.  By the 9th century, Shiraz had become known for its wine production.  Two types of white wine were produced and exported.  As white wine was being produced in the region, it is plausible that white wine vinegar would have been available and used to make sekanjabin and oxymel.

Vinegar based beverages:

Historically, vinegar has been a main ingredient in many drinks.
Posca was a mixture of vinegar and water which constituted the drink of the soldiers, the lower classes, and the slaves of ancient Rome.  Posca is mentioned in the writings of Pliny the Elder and Plautus, and was drank by Cato the Elder when on campaigns. 
Oxymel was a mixture of honey and vinegar.  Cato the Elder described it as such:
Oxymelli. Fit vinum ex aceto & melle quod oxymel vocaverunt voce Graecanica. Nam oξ(?) dicitur Graecis acetu & μίλ mel. Fit autem oxymel hoc modo. Mellis decem librae cum aceti heminis quinque, haec decies subserve faciunt atque ita sinunt inveterare. Themison summus autor damnavit oxymel & hydromel. Est autem hydromel vinum ex aquae & melle confectum, unde & nome. Celebrant autores ex omphacomel, quod fit ex uvae semiacerbae succo & melle fortiter trite unde & nome: Graec enim όμφας dicitur uvae acerbae, & όμφαφκας vocant uvas & fructus immaturus. Hinc omphalicium oleum dictum, quod ex olivis acerbis quas δίγρας(?) vocant, fit: & omphacium ex uva, quod vulgo agreste nominitant.
— Cato, reproduced by Columella, De Re Rustica[4]
A wine made from vinegar and honey, which in Greece was called oxymel, (from Ancient Greek oξύ, meaning 'acetu ', and μίλ, meaning 'mel', hence [Latin] "oxymel"). It is made thus. Ten pounds of honey with five heminas[5] of vinegar, which will be subsumed. Themison confused oxymel and hydromel. But hydromel wine is made from water and honey, hence the name. Its name recalls the creation of omphacomel, which is made from semi-dry [i.e. sharp] grapes and sweet honey, hence the name, from Ancient Greek όμφας, meaning 'uvae acerbae, Sour grapes ', and όμφαφκας, meaning 'fructus immaturus, unripe fruit'. Hence what is called omphalicium oleum ["omphalic oil"], from sour olives which in Greek is called δίγρας(?), and omphacium from grapes, commonly called agreste.
In the 1593 work Enchiridion Chirurgicum, oxymel was recommended as part of a treatment for ophthalmia.
Sekanjabin is an ancient Middle Eastern syrup based drink made with vinegar and spices. The name sekanjabin is from the Persian term  sirka anjubin, which means “honeyed vinegar.”  In period sekanjabin appears to have been used medicinally.  In the 10th century, physician Ibn Sina wrote Canon of Medicine, a book with instruction on everything from proper diet, to childbirth, and even exercise.  This book listed many medicinal used for sekanjabin, as a digestive aid and to aid with bodily imbalanaces.  He also believed it was helpful in getting a drug into bodily tissues.  The author of An Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook of the 13th Century attributed many medicinal qualities to sekanjabin as well, stating “it is beneficial for fevers of jaundice, and calms jaundice and cuts the thirst, since sikanjabîn syrup is beneficial in phlegmatic fevers.”
Many modern recipes contain herbs such as mint, however, I could not find an example of this being done in period.  As such, I made the recipe without herbs, as written.

Honey:

Most likely, in period oxymel would have been made with local honey gathered from hives that fed on indigenous wildflowers, and cultivated crops.  Unfortunately, this was not readily available, so I used a raw unfiltered wildflower honey produced in the United States.

References:

Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook Kitab al tabikh fi-l-Maghrib wa-l-Andalus fi `asr al-Muwahhidin, limu'allif majhul. The Book of Cooking in Maghreb and Andalus in the era of Almohads, by an unknown author.
M. Islamil Marcinkowski, Measures and Weights in the Islamic World, International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (ISTAC) International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) in 2003.
W. Hinz Islamische Masee und Gewicht Umgerechnet ins metrische System, (Leiden, Brill, 1959)
Dalby, Andrew. "Posca" entry in Food in the Ancient World from A to Z, p. 270. Routledge, 2003. ISBN 0-415-23259-7
Antoine Chaumette (1593). Enchiridion Chirurgicum (in Latin). p. 64.
Pliny the Younger (1853). Naturalis historiae (in Latin). xxxvii. p. 271
Friedman, D. (2000, September 4). Chapter One: On Drinks. Retrieved 14 2015, September, from An Anonymous Andalusian Cookbook of the 13th Century:
J. Robinson (ed), The Oxford Companion to Wine, Third Edition, p. 676, Oxford University Press 2006, ISBN 0-19-860990-6
Websites:
http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/Cookbooks/Andalusian/andalusian10.htm#Heading50
http://data.nur.nu/Kutub/English/Avicenna_Canon-of-Medicine_text.pdf
http://italophiles.com/andalusian_cookbook.pdf