The all important herb for your Thanksgiving turkey. Where does Sage originate?
Salvia officinalis has been used since ancient times for warding off evil, snakebites, increasing women's fertility, and more. The Romans likely introduced it to Europe from Egypt as a medicinal herb.[4] Theophrastus wrote about two different sages, a wild undershrub he calledsphakos, and a similar cultivated plant he called elelisphakos. Pliny the Elder said the latter plant was called salvia by the Romans, and used as a diuretic, a local anesthetic for the skin, a styptic, and for other uses. Charlemagnerecommended the plant for cultivation in the early Middle Ages, and during the Carolingian Empire, it was cultivated in monastery gardens.[4] Walafrid Strabo described it in his poem Hortulus as having a sweet scent and being useful for many human ailments—he went back to the Greek root for the name and called it lelifagus.[5]
The plant had a high reputation throughout the Middle Ages, with many sayings referring to its healing properties and value.[6] It was sometimes called S. salvatrix (sage the savior), and was one of the ingredients of Four Thieves Vinegar, a blend of herbs which was supposed to ward off the plague. Dioscorides, Pliny, and Galen all recommended sage as a diuretic, hemostatic, emmenagogue, andtonic.[5]
- 4 ^ a b Watters, L. L. (1901). An Analytical Investigation of Garden Sage (Salvia officinalis, Linne). New York: Columbia University.
- 5 ^ a b c Kintzios, Spiridon E. (2000). Sage: The Genus Salvia. CRC Press. pp. 10–11.ISBN 978-90-5823-005-8.
I cannot find a definite answer as to when Sage was first
used with Turkey. Sage as reading above you know it came
from the Old World. So it may or may not have been used
with turkey right away. How ever I love the flavor of Sage
with any poultry. Rosemary add a great flavor too.
So did your Ancestors use Sage in their cooking? My mom
did not cook with it since my Dad does not like it. So as an
expermental cook I quickly learned of its great flavor.
