Recipe FilerRecipeFiler
Back to Historical Recipes
A white porcelain bowl of pale blanc manger garnished with slivered almonds and pomegranate seeds on a rustic wooden table

Medieval France · France

Blanc Manger (White Chicken Almond Dish)

From Le Viandier · Guillaume Tirel (Taillevent) · 1380

Verified from original source

A snow-white dish of shredded chicken, almond milk and rice — beloved of medieval French royalty.

Historical note: Served at the royal French court. The medieval blanc-manger was savoury — the dessert version came later.

History

Blanc manger (or blancmange) originated in medieval Europe, appearing in French, English, and Italian manuscripts by the 13th-14th centuries. Taillevent's Le Viandier codified the French version around 1380. Unlike modern sweet pudding, medieval blanc manger was a savory dish combining shredded chicken breast, rice flour or ground almonds, sugar, and spices, creating a white, delicate pottage. It was prestigious feast food, served to nobility and the sick due to its digestibility and costliness. The white colour symbolized purity and refinement. Over centuries, English versions became sweeter desserts, while the almond-milk base persisted until dairy became standard in the 18th-19th centuries.

Sources

  • Taillevent (Guillaume Tirel), Le Viandier, c. 1380 (various manuscript editions)
  • Terence Scully, The Viandier of Taillevent: An Edition of all Extant Manuscripts, 1988
  • Barbara Santich, The Original Mediterranean Cuisine: Medieval Recipes for Today, 1995
  • C. Anne Wilson, Food and Drink in Britain, 1973
  • Constance B. Hieatt and Sharon Butler, Curye on Inglysch: English Culinary Manuscripts of the Fourteenth Century, 1985

Serves

4

Prep

15m

Cook

50m

Difficulty

Medium

Ingredients

  • · 2 skinless chicken breasts
  • · 150g ground almonds
  • · 80g short-grain rice
  • · 600ml chicken stock
  • · 1 tsp rose water
  • · 2 tbsp sugar
  • · 1/4 tsp salt
  • · Slivered almonds and pomegranate to garnish

Method

  1. 1

    Poach the chicken in the stock for 15 minutes. Cool and shred finely.

  2. 2

    Simmer almonds in 400ml of the reserved stock for 10 minutes. Strain — this is your almond milk.

  3. 3

    Cook rice in the almond milk over low heat until tender (~25 min).

  4. 4

    Stir in shredded chicken, rose water, sugar, salt.

  5. 5

    Cook 3 more minutes to bring together.

  6. 6

    Scatter with almonds and pomegranate. Serve warm.

Browse all 50 historical recipes →
Le Creuset - the utimate cooking dish