Lesson 4: Medieval Feasts
When we think of Medieval food, most people think about feasts. Although they were not an everyday occurrence, they are important to how we see the Middle Ages.
What were feasts?
Feasts were a way of showing off wealth and graces – the food was important, and so was the way it was presented. Food would have been given according to rank – with more dishes and more expensive dishes being offered to the high table, and much more common fare to the lowest.
Feasts were full of ritual and display. People would dress up, and expect the food to please the eye as well as the palate. It was a time for formality and ceremony. Special dishes were served, known as subtleties – they might have a joke as part of them, or be particular feats of culinary art. There would also be music and dancing and entertainment.
It was bad manners to:
- Wipe your fingers or mouth on clothes.
- Share a knife (unless you were very close to the person you were sharing with).
- Eat big pieces of food from the knife directly. You cut the food into pieces and then picked them up – but you could, carefully, eat small pieces from the knife, like a fork, or even scoop salt with it.
