Aliter Fungi Farnei (Tree Mushrooms, Another Way)
Aliter Fungi Farnei (Tree Mushrooms, Another Way) is a traditional Ancient Roman recipe for a classic dish of firm mushrooms boiled until tender and served with a salt, olive oil, wine and coriander sauce. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Ancient Roman version of: Tree Mushrooms, Another Way (Aliter Fungi Farnei).
prep time
20 minutes
cook time
25 minutes
Total Time:
45 minutes
Serves:
4
Rating: 
Tags : Wild FoodSauce RecipesVegetarian RecipesHerb RecipesAncient Roman Recipes
Original Recipe
Aliter fungi farnei: elixi ex sale, oleo, mero, coriandro conciso inferuntur.
Translation
Tree Mushrooms, Another Way: Boiled and served with salt, olive oil, wine and chopped coriander.
Modern Redaction
The mushrooms referred to here as
fungi farnei seem to be morels. The exact literal meaning is those fungi that are associated with the ash tree farnei = fraxinei. Some translations suggest bracket fungi, but they do not grow on Ash. Along with elm and sycamore the Ash is one of the trees most closely associated with morels. So I think that plumping for morels in the translation here is sensible.
Ingredients:
200g morel or other firm mushrooms, thickly sliced or cubed
1/2 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
2 tbsp olive oil
60ml red wine
2 tbsp finely-chopped
coriander (cilantro) leaves
Method:
Bring a pan of lightly-salted water to a boil. Add the mushroom pieces and cook until tender (between 5 and 30 minutes, depending on the type). When tender, drain in a colander then blot on kitchen paper.
Arrange the mushroom pieces in a serving dish. Heat the wine and salt in a pan and whisk in the olive oil and coriander leaves then pour over the mushrooms and serve.
Find more recipes from Apicius' De Re Coquinaria along with information on Apicius and his cookbook, all part of this site's Ancient Roman recipes collection.