An English translation by Virginia Cox, entitled The Worth
of Women: Wherein is Clearly Revealed Their Nobility and
their Superiority to Men, was published by the University
of Chicago Press in 1997.
food and cooking Although agricultural yields rose
slowly throughout the Renaissance period, food remained
scarce and expensive and for most people hunger was an
ever-present threat. The staples of the peasant’s diet were
root crops, especially turnips, and a coarse bread made
from rye. The availability of meat seems to have varied
greatly. In England, accounts dating from the very end of
the period suggest that about half the population ate meat
on a daily basis during times of plenty and that all but the
poorest did so once a week. This, however, was the ex-
ception; in much of Continental Europe an agricultural la-
borer could be sure of eating meat only on high feast
days—perhaps three or four times a year. It was the
French King HENRY IVwho declared that his wish was to
put a chicken in the pot of every peasant on Sunday. The
most widely eaten meats were pork and bacon, followed
by mutton, goat, rabbit, and poultry; England was again
exceptional in the wide availability of beef. Other animal
products included many types of sausage and black pud-
ding, in which minced pork fat would be mixed with pig’s
blood, crushed grains, and seasoning. The fat of pigs was
also eaten with bread and was the main fat used in cook-
ing. Although olive oil was produced in large quantities in
southern Europe, it was not generally used for cooking—
possibly because cooking in vegetable oil was associated
with the Jews (who did not use pork fat for religious rea-
sons). Other basic foods included eggs, cheese, and fish,
which served as a substitute for meat during Lent and
other periods of religious abstinence.
Within this framework, there were wide regional vari-
ations, reflecting differences in climate, soil, and custom.
Consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables, for example,
was notably higher in southern Europe, while more milk
products were eaten in the north. The north–south divide
was particularly marked in the choice of drink, with heavy
wines being preferred in the Mediterranean lands and
light wines or beer in northern countries. In England, beer
(flavored with hops) began to replace ale (a stronger brew
made without hops) from the 1520s—a change that gave
rise to the common saying “Heresy and beer came into
England both in a year.” Both wine and beer were drunk
in staggering quantities, largely for the lack of any alter-
native. Water had to be fetched from a well or spring and
was often of poor quality; milk yields were low and mainly
used to make cheese and butter; tea, coffee, and chocolate
remained unknown in Europe until the late 17th century.
In Britain and northern Europe, a large percentage of the
cultivable land was devoted to growing barley for beer,
and brewing played a major part in the economy. Cider
and perry were also drunk widely in fruit-growing areas.
Like beer and wine, these were often spiced, sweetened, or
warmed for drinking.
In the absence of refrigeration, the preservation of
meat and other food products was an urgent concern. For
most of the population, fresh meat was all but unobtain-
able during the winter, as lack of fodder meant that most
animals had to be slaughtered in the autumn (traditionally
on or about St. Martin’s day, November 11). Meat and fish
were generally preserved by smoking in northern Europe
and by salting in the Mediterranean south. The trade in
salted herrings was a major operation, controlled largely
by the HANSEATIC LEAGUE, which imported vast quantities
of salt from Portugal. Milk products, eggs, and vegetables
were preserved by various means, including the use of
vinegar and lime. In the kitchens of the wealthy, expensive
spices, such as cloves, cinnamon, ginger, or nutmeg were
also added during the preservation process. However, the
idea that such spices were used chiefly as preservatives, or
to disguise the fact that meat had become tainted, is now
regarded as a culinary myth. Rather, spices were valued for
their rich taste and smell, and were thought to have thera-
peutic and medicinal properties. Their rarity and exoti-
cism made them highly prized commodities and large
fortunes could be earned in the spice trade—a factor that
inspired many of the era’s voyages of discovery. For the
less wealthy, however, all such means of preserving or sea-
soning food remained prohibitively expensive. As a result,
most ordinary people endured a miserably inadequate diet
during the dark months of the year, relieved only by sev-
eral days of feasting at Christmas.
At the close of the Middle Ages, the diet of the
wealthy classes would have differed from that of the agri-
cultural laborer more in quality and quantity than in kind.
The banquets of the rich were characterized by robust,
earthy fare and a fairly crude style of presentation. A valu-
able insight into the dining habits of the rich is provided
by Le Viander (1375), a manuscript recipe book by
Taillevent (Guillaume Tirel), chef to Charles VI of France.
The menus are dominated by soups, pies, and meat dishes;
sauces are heavy and highly seasoned, as if to hide, rather
than enhance, the natural taste of the ingredients. The be-
ginnings of a more subtle and refined style of eating can
be traced, like so much else, to early 15th-century Italy,
where the rising merchant class was responsible for a
major change in taste. Typically, choice cuts of lamb, kid,
or veal would be set off with delicacies such as mush-
rooms or truffles (often in the form of stuffing); favorite
vegetable dishes included spinach, asparagus, and arti-
choke hearts. Minced and spiced meat was combined with
pasta, as in lasagna and ravioli, or cooked in crepes or
quenelles (croquettes). In Florence, such dishes were con-
sumed for preference without sauce. Italian cooks also ex-
celled in the production of elegant desserts—jellies and
blancmanges, ice cream, biscuits, and zabagliones. At118866 ffoooodd aanndd ccooookkiinngg