History Cookbook

‹ Back Stuarts Homepage Life Food Facts Health Facts

1		In Stuart times, food took up to four-fifths of an ordinary family's budget. Despite ways of treating food, such as salting meat and fish, the diet of the poor remained rather basic. The diet was based on hunks of bread, coarse hard cheese, meat if it could be afforded, and fish. Pottage continued to be part of the staple diet. Ale was consumed in vast quantities. More At the end of the 17th century, a writer estimated that half the population could afford to eat meat every day. Below them about 30% could afford to eat meat between 2 and 6 times a week, and the bottom 20% could only eat meat once a week.
2		Most food was still boiled or cooked over open fires. Meat was boiled or cooked on spits over fires. Soups, broth or pottage were cooked in large pots over an open fire and bread and pastries were baked in simple brick ovens. More Equipment, such as spits for roasting, became more complex but the cooking process was much the same as it had been for many years.
3		Breakfast was taken shortly after rising and was a relatively light meal. For the poor, this would have been of coarse bread; for the rich, there was probably a selection of cold meats, bread and butter and cakes, served with tea, coffee and, later in the period, chocolate. More The fashion for taking breakfast later did not arise until Georgian times, when breakfasts became more elaborate and servants needed longer to prepare them.
4		The seventeenth century dinner was taken at midday. Dinner prepared in a rich household probably contained two, or at most, three courses - but they were very large and varied. In a poorer household, one course would have been served along with bread and ale. More In a rich house, the first course would include most of the more elaborate meat dishes, together with soups. The next course would be a range of lighter meats, game and maybe some sweeter dishes to compliment. The third course was composed of fruit, sweets and cheese - and very often contained beautifully crafted dishes, designed to show off the cooks' skills as well as whet the appetite.
5		Supper was taken in the early evening. This was only a single course, but in a wealthy household it would be made up of numerous dishes, both savoury and sweet. More Just before bed time, a light meal might be served - for example, a "sack posset" made of eggs, wine and spices.
6		On special occasions, huge meals (or banquets) were served. The Christmas menu, for instance, sometimes included capons, hens, turkeys, geese and ducks. The most impressive meat dish of all was the boar's head, which had an apple or lemon in its mouth. It was decorated with holly, ivy and rosemary and carried ceremoniously into the dining hall. Later, in Cromwell's time, such festivities were banned, More The Puritans believed that if you worked hard you would earn a place in heaven, and pointless enjoyments such as festivites were frowned upon. During Cromwell's leadership, Christmas festivities were banned (Cromwell wanted people to reflect on the religious aspects instead) and celebratory feasts replaced with fast days. Cromwell himself was not strict and enjoyed music and entertainment.
7		In Stuart times salt, sugar, currants, raisins, dates, figs and apricots were all called spices. These were very important, being used to flavour food but also for medicines and perfumes. More Because they came from distant lands, and took a long sea journey to bring back, spices were very expensive.
8		Merchants dealing in spices made huge profits. Some became as wealthy as noblemen, and bought country mansions and estates. Even an ordinary sailor, who may have returned from a five-year journey around the Spice Islands, could sell his small sackful of nutmegs to give him a profit that could set him up for life. More With the money obtained, merchants and traders could buy bigger houses, hire servants and live with their families off the rest of the income.
9		Sugar colonies were established in the Caribbean. From the 1640s, the English, along with the Dutch and French, began establishing sugar colonies in the Caribbean islands. As the century progressed, hundreds of thousands of Africans were forcibly shipped from their homelands to work as slaves on the European farmers' plantations, in the West Indies and South America. More The sugar was harvested and a syrup extracted that was shipped in casks from the West Indies and refined in England. It was boiled until it reached the point of crystallisation, cooled and poured into clay cone-shaped moulds.
10		Sugar became very popular in food and drink. Cane sugar farming was so profitable that the plantation owners referred to sugar as 'white gold'. The rich were becoming used to the flavour of white sugar crystals in their tea and coffee, and bought silver sugar spoons, boxes, sieves and tongs. More By the 18th century, the West Indian sugar industry was supplying the whole of the western world and fabulous fortunes were made.
11		The Stuart period saw completely new foods appearing on the table. Fruits such as bananas and pineapples came in from Africa and Asia and tomatoes were introduced - although these were regarded as poisonous for many years. More One reason for this may have been that the acid in the tomatoes caused the lead from the pewter dishes to leech, causing lead poisoning. Pewter dishes were used by the rich. Other food introduced in the Tudor period became more common but remained expensive, including turkey, oranges and lemons.
12		In the 1650s, coffee became widely drunk in England for the first time. Coffee was imported from the East. So popular did this drink become that, in the later 17th century, many "coffee houses" sprung up in the towns. By 1675, there were over 3,000 coffee houses in England. More Merchants and professional men met in the new coffee houses, to read newspapers, talk politics, do business and gossip. Whites started as one and became a well-known gentleman's private club. Charles II later tried to suppress the London coffee houses as "places where the disaffected met, and spread scandalous reports concerning the conduct of His Majesty and his Ministers", but people flocked to them.
13		Tea also became popular in England in the later 17th century. Tea was discovered by the Chinese in ancient times, but only reached Europe in the 17th century. It was made popular by Catherine of Braganza, the wife of King Charles II. More In 1662, Charles II married a Portuguese princess, Catherine of Braganza. The Portuguese had a virtual monopoly of the European trade with China at this time, and she made tea-drinking fashionable in England among the wealthy.
14		Water carriers continued to sell water in the towns but beer or ale was the normal drink. London had 4000 water sellers, but most people drank beer as their normal drink, as the water sold could not be trusted to be clean. More Many ordinary housewives brewed their own beer, otherwise it could be bought in taverns. Cider was another popular drink, reaching its height of popularity in the 17th century.
15		Wine was drunk by the rich. Wine had to be imported and was therefore expensive. Other new drinks included rum, gin and champagne. Brandy and whisky were also popular, having come to England in the previous century. More Rum was first distilled in the Caribbean in Stuart times, and gin was introduced into England from Holland in the late 17th century. Gin soon became very popular, and a social curse. Champagne was invented in the late 17th century.
16		In the late 17th century, the rich began eating ice cream. Many rich people built special underground chambers in the grounds of their houses, for preserving ice during the summer. More The ice was covered in straw to preserve it. The ice in these "ice houses" could also be used for preserving meat and other foods.
17		At the beginning of the Stuart period, famine remained a hazard. Famine was particuarly a problem in remote country areas. About one harvest in six failed. Shortages often led to rioting and looting. As the 17th century progressed, and agricultural techniques improved, things got better. More The last major famine to affect large parts of England was in 1623, and Scotland in the 1690s.
18		During the Stuart period, methods of agriculture greatly improved in England. London's demand for constant supplies of fruit, vegetables, milk, butter, eggs and meat created a need for better farming methods. More New techniques and different types of crop were experimented with, and new breeds of sheep and cattle developed, along with the use of crop rotation and new machinery such as seed drills.
19		Game was abundant and flavoured with dried herbs and spices. A wide variety of fish was eaten, including oysters. Mutton and black pudding were common fayre. More Rabbit, pheasant, pidgeon and partridge were all popular foods and could be obtained all year round.
20		Forks became available for eating and pewter plates were now common. In the early 17th century, people began eating with forks for the first time. This habit started with the rich, but soon became widespread amongst the rest of society. The use of pewter for plates was widespread and replaced wood in many households. More Pewter was used to make flagoons (drinking cups), dishes, platters and plates. The poor, however, still used wooden plates. Their tables and seating was basic, built for necessity not comfort.
21		Dining tables and furniture were still heavy and hard-wearing. People sat along extended stools or benches either side of a table to eat; only the rich had individual chairs. There were trunks and cupboards in which to store food and cooking equipment. Table manners also improved as more people became wealthier and better educated. More The end of the Stuart period saw craftsmen experimenting in other woods, as oak was now scarce from over-use and the effects of the war. Tables and chairs became lighter and more refined.

Pease Pudding or Pottage

Bring the water to the boil Add the fresh peas and onions (and saffron, if used). If you are...

More calendar recipes