Below is a detailed article based on the appetite of the Anglo Saxons with regards to what they ate, how they grew and how they lived. Let us discuss this below.
Anglo Saxon Food
Contents
What type of food did Anglo-Saxons eat and why?
Food and drink in the Anglo Saxon England was a matter of huge fashion. The people had large feasts occasionally where many people were fed and food was prepared in a large quantity. The type of food included bread, beer, meat and also some vegetables that grew in the vicinity of England.
What food did Anglo-Saxons eat?
People went hunting and hunted wild beer whose meat was roasted and ate with beer. They grew barley and brewed beer. They also grew wheat and made flour out of it for bread. Deer meat and wild boar meat were the favourite meals of the people.
Vegetables such as onion, peas, cabbage, and parsnip grew in a large quantity and were eaten daily by the people. Apples, cherries, and plums were fruits that they ate and grew by themselves. They also made porridge using oats. Honey was a famous Anglo Saxon mix.
Anglo Saxon Food Facts
Most of the people were vegetarians but the hunters and warriors were the ones who ate meat with beer.
The rich class of the Anglo Saxons imported wine from the Mediterranean regions.
Potatoes and tomatoes, the most common vegetables of the New World were unknown to the Anglo Saxons.
During occasions, people ate their meals with beer instead of water as freshwater from the river was too polluted!
What did poor Anglo-Saxons eat?
The poor people mainly ate vegetables such as turnips, onions, garlic, carrots, beetroot, beans and peas. Meat was expensive and therefore, rarely available to the poor.
Easy Anglo Saxon Food Recipes
Anglo Saxon Honey Shortbread
Mix plain flour, cornflour in a bowl. Add some soft butter to it and add some honey. Mix these well to make a paste. Place in a flat tin and flatten it. Make a pattern using a fork. Bake it in the oven for 30 minutes at 160 degree Celsius.
Your Anglo Saxon Honey Shortbread is ready!
Hare Meat with Beer
Cut Hare meat neatly into pieces. The Anglo Saxons roasted it over a fire, alternatively, you can barbeque it. Add a mix of spices into a paste and apply over meat. Now barbeque it. Serve with a cold beer!
Your hare meat is ready to eat and smells lovely!
Roasted Pork Meat
The pork was the most available animal ready for slaughter as fast as it grew in the Anglo Saxon era. It was affordable and widely eaten amongst all classes. The pork meat was roasted and herbs were added for flavour, it was most enjoyed when served the finest baked bread in the Anglo Saxon Era and wine.
How did Anglo-Saxons cook their food?
The utensil used to cook the food was mostly a large cauldron where vegetable and herbs were boiled in water. Meat was usually roasted and sometimes boiled with vegetables to make a soup. The Anglo-Saxons also ate ample bread which was their staple food.
Anglo-Saxon spices
The Angl0-Saxons used spices to flavour their foods. Spices such as coriander, thyme and dill were common. Pepper, cinnamon and ginger were expensive and had to be imported. They were, therefore, only used by the rich people. Salt was also very common and was used in almost every dish.
Anglo Saxon Food and Farming
The Anglo Saxon era had many peasants. They belonged to the lower class of society. They worked hard for a living. However, they led a good and simple life. They ate what the grew. The fruits and vegetables were grown by them and also bought from them by the rest of the people. The other classes consisted of the Kings and the warriors who were respected the farming class.
The farmers also bred animals. Cows were taken care of. Animals such as sheep, lamb, and pigs were husbanded. Animals stayed at the shed or at the manger built near the farmers land.
The other classes also bought the meat to eat from the farming class.
Anglo Saxon Food History is diverse and based on everything available in the surrounding and easily grown.
