Patum Peperium - or, Never Assume

This isn't from the current book I'm annotating, The Cape Cod Mystery (1931) or indeed from any mystery story.

But when I take a break from my work, I like to read the children's books of Margery Sharp - more specifically her The Rescuers series - they are a lot of fun and I love Miss Bianca.

Well, for years and years I've read The Turret, and Miss Bianca always offers a young half-Irish mouse named Shaun, toast and patum peperium spread. And I'd always assumed that this was some kind of pepper spread.

But today, I finally decided to look it up, and no, it has nothing to do with pepper. Anchovies are its main ingredient.

It's also called Gentlemen's Relish, and while I believe I have read of Gentlemen's Relish being served...I think in a couple of Catherine Aird's mystery novels, I had never looked that up either.

I'm afraid it never would have occurred to me that anything would be made out of anchovies!

So, you learn something new every day, especially if you're willing to look up words to which you already thought you knew the correct definition.

Gentleman's Relish is a type of anchovy paste. It is also known as Patum Peperium.

It was created in 1828 by an Englishman called John Osborn. It has a strong, very salty and slightly fishy taste, and contains anchovies (minimum 60%), butter, herbs and spices. The exact recipe however has remained a secret and has been passed down by word of mouth over the years. Today, only Elsenham Quality Foods in Elsenham, England, is licensed to make it.

Gentleman's Relish is traditionally eaten thinly spread on slices of buttered white-bread toast, either on its own, or with cucumber, or "Mustard and cress" sprouts. It can also be added to minced meat for a different-tasting shepherd's pie or to the mixture for fish cakes, potato cakes and croquettes. Alternatively it can be melted into scrambled eggs or be used as a topping for jacket potatoes. It has been depicted as an upper or middle class taste, for example Gentleman's Relish is mentioned in Nancy Mitford's book, The Pursuit of Love as a favorite food of Uncle Matthew. In Ian Fleming's book For Your Eyes Only (short story collection) - it mentions that at the time of the visitors, Mr and Mrs Havelock were having Patum Peperium sandwiches.