The Forme of Cury was prepared by the master cooks of King Richard II.
The Forme of Cury is a major collection of medieval English recipes, compiled around 1390. Its title means roughly “the method of cooking,” with cury deriving from an older French word connected with cookery. The surviving text is associated with the chief or master cooks of Richard II, who reigned in England from 1377 to 1399.
The book is not simply a record of everyday meals. Its recipes include elaborate dishes designed for aristocratic banquets, where rare spices, vivid colors, and impressive presentation demonstrated wealth and status. It also records influences from French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Arabic culinary traditions.
The collection contains recipes for meats, sweets, sauces, pasta, and vegetables. One famous dish, makerouns, is often described as an early macaroni-and-cheese recipe. Loseyn, another pasta preparation, is compared with modern lasagna because it layered dough with fillings. The original manuscript is lost, but the text survives in several later manuscript copies.