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Food and Drink
Fruit and Vegetables
When we go to the shops today we find a wealth of fruit and vegetables from which to choose. For people in the tenth and eleventh century it was not so; they had no potatoes, no tomatoes, no parsley, no bananas, no pineapple, no lemons, no oranges, etc.. They had only what they could find in the wild or what they could grow in their fields and gardens.We know that they grew wheat, rye, oats and barley, but with these grew plenty of weeds - some of which were quite poisonous. People eating bread with these seeds in must have been quite ill from time to time.
It is known that they had carrots, but these were small, white, thin-rooted examples. They also ate wild parsnips and wild cabbages. In fact most of the vegetables we have today have only been developed into the large tasty varieties we know in the last 150 years. Other vegetables included peas, beans and roots such as burdock.
One way in which the people made up for the poor quality of these vegetables was to flavour them with native and imported herbs and spices. Dill, coriander and thyme were used quite a lot as were ginger, cinnamon, cloves and mace. Garlic and wild onions helped to give the meat from old animals some flavour and were used extensively.Fig. 1: Small, thin-rooted carrot of the type found in Anglo-Saxon England.
Many fruits were eaten, and seeds from excavations tell us that they also had small apples (crab-apples), plums, cherries and sloes which were probably sweetened with honey - they did not have sugar. Pears, peaches, blackberries, bilberries, wild strawberries, raspberries, grapes, blackcurrents, redcurrents, elderberries and other wild fruits also formed part of most people’s diet. Almonds, walnuts, beech-nuts, hazel nuts and chestnuts were eaten too.
Honey was used to make a sweet alcoholic drink called mead, which was usually flavoured with some form of herb such as meadowsweet (O.E. meduwyrt - meaning mead plant). Barley was used to make beer which would have been flavoured with wild hops. Wine was drunk, but this was generally imported although fruit wines may have been home-produced. There are also written references to ‘apple-wine’, probably a form of cider. Many fruit juices including apple, pear and plum were drunk as were herbal ‘teas’ and a drink made from acorns. Spirits and fortified wines were not known although the apple wine may have had quite a high alcohol content.Fig 2: Apples were a commonly eaten fruit in Anglo-Saxon England. They were also used to make a type of cider.
Fish
We know about the fish that were eaten in the period from bones which have been found during archaeological excavations. Some bones have been found whilst digging was being carried out, but most need soil samples to be washed through fine meshed sieves back in the laboratory. Some bones come from toilet pits and appear to have been chewed up before being swallowed. It has been possible to find out what kinds of fish were eaten by comparing the bones with those of fish today.
Evidence shows a variety of fish were eaten - herring, salmon and eel as well as some which are not eaten much today such as pike, perch and roach. They seem to have also eaten flounder, whiting, plaice, cod and brown trout too. Shellfish, especially oysters, mussels and cockles, seem to have formed part of many peoples diets. Fish was eaten fresh, but was also preserved for less plentiful times of year. This was done by salting, pickling or smoking.Fig. 3: Some of the fish eaten in Anglo-Saxon England. From top to bottom: herring, salmon, eel and perch.
How were fish caught? In Aelfric's Colloquy the fisherman explains his craft:Fig. 4: Some of the fish eaten in Anglo-Saxon England. Top: pike; bottom: flounder.
Master: How do you catch the Fish?It seems that river fish were caught in nets, hunted with fish-spears or even caught in wicker traps. Large sea fish were caught in nets which floated below the surface of the sea and others were caught with hooks and lines. Whales and dolphins were also hunted for their meat, as well as other useful products such as whalebone and fat.
Fisherman: I board my boat and cast my net into the river; and throw in a hook and bait and baskets; and whatever I catch I take.
Master: What if the fish are unclean?
Fisherman: I throw the unclean ones away, and take the clean ones for food.
Master: Where do you sell your fish?
Fisherman: In the city.
Master: Who buys them?
Fisherman: The citizens. I can't catch as many as I can sell.
Master: Which fish do you catch?
Fisherman: Eels and pike, minnows and turbot, trout and lampreys and whatever swims in the water. Small fish.
Master: Why don't you fish in the sea?
Fisherman: Sometimes I do, but rarely, because it is a lot of rowing for me to the sea.
Master: What do you catch in the sea?
Fisherman: Herrings and salmon, porpoises and sturgeon, oysters and crabs, mussels, winkles, cockles, plaice and flounders and lobsters, and many similar things.
Master: Would you like to catch a whale?
Fisherman: Not me!
Master: Why?
Fisherman: Because it is a risky business catching a whale. It's safer for me to go on the river with my boat, than to go hunting whales with many boats.
Master: Why so?
Fisherman: Because I prefer to catch a fish that I can kill, rather than a fish that can sink or kill not only me but also my companions with a single blow.
Master: Nevertheless, many catch whales and escape danger, and make great profit by it.
Fisherman: You are right, but I dare not because of my timid spirit.
Meat
Most meat eaten by the Saxons came from animals which had more than one use. Sheep were kept for their wool and meat, cows for their milk, sinews and hides. The horn was used for fastenings, drinking vessels and had many other uses. The hide of a bull was as valuable for its leather as the meat. Even the bone was used for belt ends, needles, knife handles, pins for hair and clothing and even for ice skates! Goats were kept for their milk and meat. Only pigs seem to have been raised purely for their meat. It is not clear whether horses were killed for meat or kept purely as riding animals and beasts of burden.
Pigs were important for food because they produce large litters, which would quickly produce food. However, the numbers of pigs kept gradually decreases throughout the Saxon period. Remains of pigs of all sizes have been found suggesting they were killed as and when they were needed, rather than at set times of the year.Fig. 5: Most meat came from cows, sheep and pigs.
Cows produce ten times more meat than sheep or goats and beef production grew increasingly important as pig numbers decreased. Most adult cattle were female, suggesting dairying was also important.
Sheep and goats always accounted for about 50% of the livestock and are ideal animals, as they can be grazed on land that is unsuitable for cattle and pigs, and they are a multipurpose animal. The sheep were generally similar to the Soay breed, but were larger although a sheep similar to a small Romney Marsh sheep was also kept. A high proportion were killed when young and a large number of these were female. Most adult sheep were wethers (castrated rams) raised mainly for wool. The goats were probably similar to feral goats. The exact proportion of sheep to goats is unknown since it is not usually possible to distinguish between sheep and goats from skeletal evidence.
Hens, of course, gave eggs as well as meat for the pot, as did ducks and geese. Their hollow bones were used for musical pipes. Various wild birds were eaten too, such as ducks, plover, grouse, herons and geese. Hares were also caught (there were no rabbits until after the Norman Conquest). Deer were hunted for meat, skins and antler. Wild boar would also be hunted for their meat and tusks.
Meat was generally preserved by drying, salting or smoking.
Cooking
Most meals would have been some form of stew, soup or pottage cooked in a cauldron over the central hearth of the house. Bread, baked in a clay oven or on a griddle, would also be a daily foodstuff. Flour could be ground at a water mill although more usually it would be done in the home using a hand quern. Wealthier people would have been able to afford an imported rotary quern from the Rhineland. When the flour is freshly querned from recently cut grain little yeast needed to be added to the dough as there is a reasonable yeast content in fresh grain.
Much of the time, especially amongst the poor, meat would only be used in small quantities to give extra flavour. This did not mean that Saxons were vegetarians, in fact they would eat as much meat as they could afford to. The wealthier a person was, the more often meat would figure in their diets.Fig. 6: The stages in making bread. From top to bottom: grinding the flour using a quern, kneading the dough and baking in an oven. The bottom picture shows an alternative method of cooking bread on a griddle.
The vegetables used in cooking would have been those that were in season at the time, although some may have been preserved by drying or pickling. Similarly, meat would have been used more in summer and autumn when domestic animals were killed and game was more readily available, although pigs, sheep and cattle were killed during the winter to provide fresh meat and save too much depletion of winter fodder. When the animals, especially pigs, were killed the blood was probably collected to make a form of black pudding. This is made by stirring the blood until it is cool to stop it congealing and then adding flour and herbs. The animal fat was used both for cooking and to make tallow for lamps and dubbin. Meat was preserved by salting or smoking and some may have been dried. Fish could be preserved by salting, smoking or pickling.
Milk would have been used to make butter and cheese, especially sheep's and goat's milk. Eggs from chickens, ducks and geese would also have been eaten although the fowl of the period would not have laid as often as their modern counterparts.
One of the most important foodstuffs was honey as this was the only sweetener available. A good hive could produce about 100lbs of honey in a year. (A family of 6 would require about ˝lb honey per day.) Sweet foods like honey and almond cakes, types of cheesecake and gingerbreads were popular, but usually not an everyday foodstuff. Sugar, whilst used in North Africa, was not much used in Europe.
Other methods of cooking used included; frying in a frying pan or griddle (similar to a chestnut roaster), baking in a clay or turf oven, grilling on a spiral griddle, hanging griddle or on a ‘barbecue’ (similar to that shown on the Bayeux Tapestry). Spit roasting was done on a large rotary spit or using small skewers like a kebab skewer. Food could also be boiled in a cauldron or baked in the embers of a fire (usually wrapped in leaves or clay).
Banquets were held by the nobility (and sometimes the lower ranks too), particularly on religious feast days. These banquets would have as many as ten or twelve courses, although each course was fairly small. Fish and meat would make up several of the courses, although some courses would be purely vegetable. Much alcoholic drink was also served at banquets. An honoured guest would be served drink by the banquet giver's wife and/or daughter (or the banquet giver if they were a woman).Fig. 7: Clay oven of the type used in the Viking Age. (Click on image for a closer look)
Food was eaten from wooden or clay bowls using only a knife and spoon (forks do not seem to have been used for eating). There are Scandinavian finds of pointed ‘food sticks’ made of wood or bone which may have been used for picking up pieces of meat and larger vegetables. Wooden plates were used for some food although pottery ones are virtually unknown. Drinking vessels were made from a variety of materials in a number of styles. The commonest would have been wooden or pottery cups and mugs. Horns (often highly decorated) were also used. Conical glass vessels were used, but were rare. Small wooden or silver cups were used for strong drinks. Leather may also have been used for drinking vessels although there is little evidence of this. There is no evidence for drinking vessels with handles ever being used. Drinks were served from pottery jugs and pitchers or from bottles made of wood, clay or leather. Wooden tubs and ladles may also have been used for serving drinks.Fig. 8: Feast from an Anglo-Saxon manuscript.
Ben Levick September 1992
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