Food2

Jack Wells English-8-2 4-4-10  **  WHAT WERE POPULAR TYPES OF BANQUETS, FEASTS, FOOD, AND DRINK IN shakespeare’s ENGLAND? what were popular recipes? HOW WERE THESE DIFFERENT IN URBAN/RURAL LIFE? HOW WERE THESE DIFFERENT IN NOBLE/MERCHANT/COMMON LIFE? ** ** Answer prepared by: Jack Wells ** People in Elizabethan England were better fed than people in other countries during that time period. There was a big difference between what was on the table of a wealthy family and that of a commoner as there are now. I will explain the differences between poor and wealthy peoples’ food, how the food differed in urban and rural life, and the difference in recipes in noble’s households and commoner’s households. People of this time period mainly ate food in three groups: meat, bread, and beer. The wealthy people ate a big variety of meats including pork with mustard, boiled beef, roasted beef, roasted cow’s tongue, turkey, swan, venison, young goat, deer, rabbit, and pheasant. For the majority of people, their tables were filled with mutton, pork, chicken, and goose. Wealthy had meat everyday while common people had meat maybe once or twice a week. Bread was served at every meal no matter how poor or wealthy you were. Pottage was very common at meals of all classes. Pottage was made of grain and sometimes some meat would be added. In wealthy homes, almonds, cinnamon, or ginger could be added. Every one of this time period drank beer and ale. The water was not fit for drinking so people turned to beer and ale. Ale was very expensive to brew so beer was the most common drink around. People brewed beer in large amounts and stored it because beer didn’t spoil easily. Beer was unbelievably cheap at about a penny a gallon. As you can see, there wasn’t much variety in Elizabethan food. Although vegetables were not popular, fruits and sugar had been popular for a very long time. Physicians thought that uncooked fruit caused fevers so people cooked their cherries, pears, apricots, and plums. These fruits were used in pies, cakes, jellies, and tarts. Sugar was very popular because Elizabethans loved sweet foods. The more sugar you used, the wealthier you were. It was a good indication of social class. Lower classes used fruit and honey as sweeteners because they couldn’t afford sugar. Middle classes used sugar for only special occasions and banquets and making candies and jellies. The upper classes used sugar regularly and even used it to make sculptures. One huge problem that even the well fed Elizabethans couldn’t figure out: how to preserve food. Food preservation was a problem for all classes. Obviously, there was no refrigeration and the bugs and rats made people store the food very carefully. People liked to smoke or salt meat and fish which would let the food go longer without spoiling. People also dried fruits and made them into preserves to make them last longer. Wooden barrels were used to hold salted fish, beer, and dried fruit so that animals and insects couldn’t get at them. An airtight, clay jar with straight sides was used to store butter and milk. Most preservation techniques made sense but some did not including one method that said to preserve cherries, you had to put them in a barrel of hay that was inside a feather mattress. Most preservation techniques were not very successful and food spoiled all the time. But people didn’t want to waste their food so they came up with ways to eat the spoiled food. The most popular way of doing this was to mask the taste with heavy spices. Most of the customs of the time weren’t very healthy but it worked for them. When meals were served, many components were needed to make it a successful meal. The housewife was usually the ones who made the meal while one of the children would set the table. A table cloth was used and table ware was put on the table but some things were very different than they are now. Everybody had a spoon and each person used their same spoon at every meal. Knives were common because of the amount of meat that was eaten. But forks were almost never seen. Forks were occasionally used by wealthy families to steady a piece of meat that was being cut. Forks however, were never put in ones mouth or used to actually eat any food. Also on the table were things called trenchers. A trencher was a small plates that could be made of wood, pewter, or silver. Another plate that was used was a voider. A voider was used to hold bones and other parts of food that people didn’t want to eat. People used their knives to spear the food from a communal dish and place the food on one’s trencher. Once on the trencher, you were expected to use your fingers to eat the food. Many things have changed over time and eating habits are definitely one of them. As you can see, the things people did concerning food have changed dramatically over the years. From preservation to eating habits, almost everything has been updated or new technology has given the old ways the back seat. But one thing will always stay the same: people in all places, classes, and time periods, cherish their food. ** Works Cited ** ** Book Sources ** Stewart, Gail B. //Elizabethan England: Life In Elizabethan London//. Michigan: Lucent Books, 2003. p.54-63. Print. Singman, Jeffrey L. //Daily Life In Elizabethan England//. Westport, Conneticut: Greenwood Press, 1995. 131-141. Print. ** Internet Sources  ** Thomas, Heather. "Elizabethan Food." //Queen Elizabeth I//. N.p., 2010. Web. 4 Apr 2010. []. "Elizabeth I." //BBC- History: Tudors//. BBC, 2010. Web. 4 Apr 2010. [].

Some pictures that should give you an idea of how people ate at the time.