TOP MEDIEVAL FOODS MAC

Take the two together and you have bacon and eggs, the origin, perhaps, as historian Chris Woolgar suggests, of the “English” breakfast.Īlthough eggs were not allowed during the Lenten fast, ingenious medieval chefs created confectionery alternatives. Less known is Collop Monday, an occasion to eat up preserved meats such as bacon in slices – collops. The beginning of Lent was marked gastronomically by Shrove Tuesday, perhaps more familiar as Pancake Day, where people used up their stocks of eggs and animal fat.

Large fish such as sturgeon also feature in many stories of the saints, for example Anselm of Canterbury, (1033-1109) and Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153). Freshwater fish including trout, pike and, in some cases, sturgeon seem to have been served in elite households. Of especial importance was the range of dried sea fish that formed one of the mainstays of the northern European economy.ĭrying (stockfish) and salting were the two principal methods of preservation, with herring and cod the dominant species. Fish was therefore important for Lenten diets, for those that could afford it.

This involved abstinence from meat on particular days, for example, Fridays and periods before major church festivals. 186v, CC BYĭuring Lent medieval society operated within a system of dietary regulation set by the church. Simnels as white wheat bread were at the top of the pile.įrom The Hague medieval illuminated manuscripts, The Hague, KB, 78 D 38 II Gospels Fol. Medieval bread came in many different forms and qualities. A good example is simnels – not the almond cake but a very high-quality wheat loaf, known across medieval Europe. Lamb was certainly a meat with specific links to the festival, but traces of other foodstuffs now associated with Easter and Lent can also be found in the period. Two centuries later, roast lamb at Easter had been adopted more widely by the papacy, the leaders of the Catholic church. Some argue that hot cross buns come from St Albans buns, apparently invented by the monk of St Albans Thomas Rockcliffe in the mid-14th century.įrom around the seventh century, prayers in the north Italian monastery of Bobbio, founded by the Irish monk Columbanus, blessed lamb eaten for Easter lunch. Whether hot cross buns come from the same period is open to question. Versions of simnels (high-quality bread), decorated eggs, pancakes, and roast lamb can all be found in medieval European culture. Lent is traditionally a time of giving up food, especially meat and dairy. Both Easter and its long prelude Lent have traditions associated with food. Spoiled food and rotting meat pies were common gross medieval foods sold on the street.Easter is the principal festival of the Christian year. Pretzels were a popular street food option, and they were also seen as a good luck charm.īut medieval junk food wasn't always delicious. They ate gingerbread and waffles when they had a craving for sweet foods. People brought their own meat to bakers, who wrapped it in dough and baked it. And the fast food version of the medieval food list incorporated many basic ingredients adapted for take-out. The average diet in the Middle Ages included a lot of bread, vegetables, and meat. Instead, medieval junk food usually catered to the poorest people and travelers.

But knights didn't ride their horses to medieval drive-throughs.

TOP MEDIEVAL FOODS MAC

Just substitute a meat pie for the Big Mac and a funnel cake for the Twinkies, and you'll have a good idea of what medieval people bought on the street. What was medieval junk food like? If you're picturing knights eating Big Macs and Twinkies, you're not far off from the truth.

Top medieval foods