The University rescues the recipes of the cook of King Philip III

In 1611, Francisco Martínez Montiño, the chief cook of King Philip III, wrote the recipe book Arte de cocina, pastelería, bizcochería y conservería, a work with more than half a thousand recipes and culinary tricks. Such was its success that it was reprinted 25 times between the 17th and 19th centuries. Four hundred years after its publication, the Siglo de Oro Research Group (GRISO) of the University of Navarra has launched a critical edition of the book, with the help of the Institute of Aurisecular Studies (Batihoja Collection, New York, 2021).

The authors, Jesús M. Usunáriz, Professor of Contemporary History of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and Magalí Ortiz, an expert in the history of gastronomy and a graduate in History and Journalism from the University of Navarra, presented the work in a ceremony held in the restaurant of the University Museum. The event, introduced by Carlos Mata, secretary of GRISO, was also attended by the chef Pol Contreras, who was in charge of the creative workshop at Echaurren in Ezcaray, who prepared three of Montiño's recipes.

A cookery demonstration by chef Pol Contreras.

As Usunáriz explained, the book is aimed at both cooking professionals and a wide public interested in gastronomy. In a clear and simple way, it explains how to prepare very diverse dishes, "from the most traditional, such as bean stew, borage soup or buñuelos de viento, to the most innovative and sophisticated, such as wild boar cheese, wood pigeon with almond sauce or Savoy cakes".

The edition also includes a glossary that analyzes terms, techniques and ingredients of the time: "With this book we can better understand the culture of the Golden Age, identify some codes that are unknown to us, and get closer to the men and women of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries through their cuisine, because cooking is also culture". In this sense, he shared with the audience some curiosities of the time, such as the dishes that were prepared for certain patients, the tastes of King Philip III, or terms such as Days of fish, which Montiño cites in his book: "Many are unaware that almost 150 days a year they practiced fasting and abstinence and so it was included in the calendar of the time".

Gastronomic experience, yesterday and today

During the conference, reference was made to current concepts such as "gastronomic experience", which were also present centuries ago. In her speech, Magalí Ortiz said that the edition of the book coincided with an internship she did at the IXO Group, which allowed her to identify similar parameters in both periods: "I realized that, despite the time difference, the current gastronomic experience is similar to that of the court in the Golden Age. There are many parallels, from the importance of aspects such as cleanliness in the kitchen, or the service, to the experiential environment surrounding the food".

Pol Contreras agreed that "the way of eating in the 16th and 17th centuries has not changed much with respect to the 21st century. It is surprising how something that we can think of as modern was already being done centuries ago". Likewise, the winner of the Revelation award for Best Restaurant Pastry Chef 2019 Madrid Fusion and finalist of The Best Dessert 2014 in Mesamérica (Mexico City), says that "to develop an avant-garde cuisine, you have to look back".

The work is available in open access for consultation and download in PDF in DADUN, the repository of the University of Navarra. It can be accessed on the following link.

Jesús M. Usunáriz is a professor in Contemporary History in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and a member of the research group GRISO. His studies have focused on the international relations of the Hispanic Monarchy and on the social and cultural history of the 16th-18th centuries. Among other publications, he is the author of España en Alemania: la Guerra de los Treinta Años en las crónicas y relaciones de sucesos (2016), o del Diccionario de injurias de los siglos XVI y XVII (2019), written with Cristina Tabernero. He is director of the Journal Memoria y Civilización (Memory and Civilization)  and of GRISO's Biblioteca Áurea Digital (BIADIG) collection.

Magalí Ortiz Martín has a degree in History and Journalism from the University of Navarra. She has worked at elBulliFoundation, where she has participated in projects such as elBulliLab (2016) or elBulli1846 (2021), both related to the History of Gastronomy and creativity. She has also collaborated with the Communication department of the IXO restaurant group, including Mugaritz and Nerua, and with that of the Six Senses hotel chain in Portugal.

Pol Contreras is in charge of the creative workshop at Echaurren in Ezcaray. His first steps in catering were at the age of 15 and since then he has trained as a pastry chef and cook in restaurants and pastry shops in different countries in Europe. He is a winner of the Revelation Award for Best Restaurant Pastry Chef 2019 Madrid Fusion and finalist of The Best Dessert 2014 in Mesamérica (Mexico City). He has his own brand of chocolates, "Chocolates Pol Contreras" and has developed a new chocolate with the pulp of the cocoa fruit. He also has a podcast on Youtube, "Oído", in which he talks to personalities from the world of gastronomy.