Roman melon with honey and pepper

A Roman preparation from Apicius: melon dressed with honey, black pepper, vinegar, and a splash of garum, tasting of empire at its most refined and strange

Origin: Roman Empire

From the journey of Musk Melon.

Romans were enthusiastic melon eaters. The emperor Tiberius was reportedly so obsessed with cucumbers and melons that he had them grown year-round in moveable cold frames. Apicius's De re coquinaria (c. 1st century CE) includes melon preparations that typify Roman flavour aesthetics: the combination of sweet, sour, salty, and spiced in a single dish. The use of garum (fermented fish sauce) with fruit is distinctly Roman: the umami saltiness of garum intensifies and lifts the sweetness of the melon in a way that initially seems strange but is immediately understood on tasting. This recipe is an authentic reconstruction from the Apician tradition.

Ingredients

Base

  • 1 medium ripe cantaloupe or muskmelon

Dressing

  • 2 tbsp clear honey (runny)
  • 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 0.5 tsp freshly ground black pepper (generously ground)
  • 0.5 tsp fish sauce (as garum substitute, Colatura di alici is most authentic)
  • 1 pinch ground cumin

Garnish

  • 4 fresh mint leaves, to garnish

Method

  1. Halve the melon, scoop out the seeds, and cut the flesh into slices or wedges. Arrange on a serving platter.
  2. Whisk together the honey, red wine vinegar, black pepper, fish sauce (garum), and a pinch of cumin in a small bowl.
  3. Taste the dressing. It should be sweet-sour with a clear savoury depth from the garum and a warming pepper note. Adjust honey or vinegar to taste.
  4. Spoon the dressing over the melon slices. Scatter with a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper: the Romans used black pepper extravagantly.
  5. Garnish with fresh mint. Serve immediately at room temperature, as a starter or as part of a Roman-style gustatio (appetiser course).

Notes

This recipe is based on Apicius 3.7 (Pepones et melones), which gives a dressing of pepper, pennyroyal (an herb), honey, garum, vinegar, and cumin for melons and cucumbers. Pennyroyal (a mint family herb used medicinally in Rome) is replaced here with standard fresh mint. The garum is represented by modern fish sauce or Colatura di alici. The fundamental flavour, sweet melon against a savoury-sweet-acidic-spiced dressing, is the authentic Roman preparation.

The Gastrographer

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