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Elizabethan Food & Diet

During the Elizabethan era, which took place in late 16th century England, people knew very little about nutrition and the elements of a healthy diet. Because of this the food people ate came to represent status and wealth rather than health and nutrition. This emphasis on excessive consumption coupled with the religious demands on eating, such as fasting for long periods, make the Elizabethan diet one to avoid recreating.

  1. Elizabethan Food

    • During the Elizabethan era the wealthy viewed unprepared food, such as fruit and vegetables, with suspicion. Because of this they consumed very little. Fruit and vegetables were reserved for the poor, for which "foods from the ground" were delegated. Dairy products were also looked down upon by the wealthy Elizabethans, and therefore also considered food for the poor.

      The wealthy Elizabethans preferred to show off their status by eating large amounts of meat. These dishes ranged from the ordinary, such as pig, chicken, rabbit, and beef to the odd and seemingly unappetizing, such as boiled pigeon and calves feet.

    Elizabethan Meal

    • Many Elizabethan meals were prepared in a banquet style, where the host was concerned with displaying wealth and status through the contents of the meal. Because of this Elizabethan meals were often feasts where memorable visual displays and excesses of food were important. The meal was consumed without silverware, and the standard was for a person to cut a slab of meat with a knife and then eat it with a piece of bread as a plate.

      Elizabethans also consumed a large amount of different ales, including mead, a sweet alcoholic beverage, which was imbibed by all members of Elizabethan society - from the poor to the rich.

    Elizabethan Diet

    • Because nobles during the Elizabethan era looked down on fruits, vegetables, and dairy their diet lacked many important vitamins and minerals, including Vitamin C, calcium, and fiber. This lack of nutrition led to a variety of health problems, such as bad teeth and skin diseases.

      In fact, having bad or blackened teeth became fashionable, and people would spend large amounts of money on sugar - then an expensive commodity - because it was known to blacken teeth. And if sugar was not available some Elizabethans would even use cosmetics to obtain a black coloring on their teeth.

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