European Medieval Food
European medieval food saw relatively few changes for a long time. Barbaric tribes and a strict Catholic church made little to stimulate any advances. Horrible diseases and extreme poverty clouded a lot of this period. Influences from other cultures were very present. It lasted between 500AD until 1500AD.
The Catholic Church was very influential during the Middle Ages.
Foreign Influences
This period saw few changes in food habits for a long time. It might be that Europe was suffering from some kind of cultural "hangover" after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, also the many dietary restrictions brought on by the strict Catholic church had an influence on the Medieval food. From the year 500 until 1000 the population in Europe was in a steady decline, during this time many positive influences came with crusades and from strong Turkish empires in the Middle East. The Arabs occupied a big part of Spain and that for sure brought in new ideas. Russia and Eastern Europe were for a long period dominated by Mongolians and Huns, however, it is unsure how much it influenced food culture. The exploration and colonization started in the 15th century, of course, changed everything, and it might actually be what ended the Middle Ages.
Agriculture
To start with not much developed in terms of agriculture, in some ways it took several steps back from the Romans. The only great exception must be the monasteries where monks and nuns kept on cultivating and experimenting.
Around the year 1000 things started to change. A more effective crop rotation system together with improved equipment led to a lot better yields - warmer climate also had a positive effect. The result was that the population started to boom and cities to grow, a development only halted by the terrible bubonic plague and a colder climate.
The most common crop was barley which was eaten in the form of hard bread or grue. In Western Europe, oat was important, in more barren regions like Scandinavia it was rye. Wheat existed but was the rich man's food except for in the south where it was easier to grow. Important vegetables and legumes were spinach, peas, onions, leeks, carrots, beans and cabbage. Cows were kept for the milk, it was refined into precious butter and cheese. Aside from cows, pigs and sheep were also kept. In the south grapes and olives were grown and refined into wine and oil.
Meat And Fish
The rich would eat cow, mutton, pig, venison and wild boar. The poor ate small games and on rare occasions pig. The chicken was the most common fowl, hens provided eggs. A wide variety of wildfowl was eaten as well. Fish was common, many times salted, and was an important source for protein. Herring and cod were paramount in the north, both as food and as a commodity . both salted and dried.
Rich And Poor
The difference between what poor and rich ate was immense. The rich ate meat, pastries, wheat bread and fruits. The poor would have a cereal-based diet accompanied by vegetables and legumes. It was actually believed that you should eat what you were - a poor person should eat poor food - it was the order of things. The bread was the common demeanor in Medieval food, eaten by rich and poor, the base cereal differed so the order was upheld.
Spices And Seasoning In Medieval Food
Spice was a luxury for the rich. There was no good method to refine sugar and honey was hard to get by so the fruit was often used as a sweetener. In the south, it would be bitter citric fruit, grape, and pomegranate. Up north it was an apple, pear, strawberry, and plum. Black pepper, saffron, and ginger were popular with the wealthy. Vinegar was used together with the spicy and sweet to create a kind of medieval "sweet and sour". If spices were expensive, herbs were used all over Europe by the less fortunate - examples are dill, mint, sage, mustard, and parsley.
Beverages
Where it was possible wine was made from grapes, in the beginning white, towards the end of the period also red. Honey and spices were still used in the wine. In parts of Europe were grapes wouldn´t grow the drinks were barley-based like mead and beer, the wine was very expensive in these areas. Arabic science reached European monks and they soon learned how to make distilled alcoholic drinks like brandy and whiskey.
Cooking And Food Preservation
Open fire was still the most common method - boiling, stewing and frying in various cauldrons. Stone ovens were used to bake bread. The specific qualities of egg were starting to be recognized and pies and pastries became very popular among the rich but a luxury for the poor. Salting was the most important preservation method together with drying - fermenting, pickling and smoking.
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