Haricot of Lamb

From Taillevent, Le viandier (Paris, 1392; recipe from 1892 edition): Take your lamb and put it raw to deep-fry in lard, and divide it in small pieces, put onions chopped small with it, and moisten with beef broth, and add some wine, and verjuice, and mace, hyssop, and sage, and simmer well together.

Hericoq or haricot of mutton appears in almost all the medieval French cookbooks, but at that time the term had nothing to do with beans (also called haricots in French). Possibly it was related to an old verb, harigoter, meaning “to chop up.” At least three versions of hericoq appear in the various manuscripts of Le viandier, and this is the simplest: mutton and onions cut into small pieces and simmered with a little bit of everything, including wine, verjuice, herbs, and mace. A dark, fragrant stew is the result, which some historians link to Arab cuisine.