Image: Smith, R. (Robert) · Public domain
Court Cookery, or The Compleat English Cook
- Year
- 1725
- Era
- 18th century
- Origin
- England · Europe
- Language
- English
- Category
- English pre-1800
Court Cookery, or The Compleat English Cook, first published in 1725, is a receipt book compiled by Robert Smith, who had served in the kitchens of the English court, including under William III. The work records the fashionable dishes of the early Georgian table, ranging from made dishes and ragouts to pastries and preserves, and offers a valuable record of aristocratic cookery in the decades following the Restoration courtly tradition.
Cooking from this book
A Grand Olio
Signature dishThe Grand Olio stands as one of the most theatrical dishes in Smith's collection, a lavish pottage of mixed meats, fowl and roots simmered together and presented as the centrepiece of a polite Georgian table. Drawn from Iberian and French court fashion, it embodies the showy abundance Smith encountered during his service to royal and noble households, and it captures the ambition of early eighteenth century English cookery aspiring to continental grandeur.
An editorial note on a dish associated with this book, written for The Coquinist. It is not a reproduction of the book's recipe.
