The Tudors were an English-Welsh family that ruled Wales and England between 1485 and 1603 A.D. Early Tudor society was predominantly agricultural, yet the mining of coal, iron, tin and lead during the latter part of the 16th century transformed England into a commercially-driven society. Tudor society remained a class system in which the nobility and the peasants consumed drastically different diets.
Beverages
During the Tudor era, the water was polluted and could not be consumed by anyone. The higher classes viewed milk as a lower class beverage and therefore did not consume it. The lower class could only consume fresh milk, because no pasteurization process existed to keep milk fresh during this period. Tudor peasants also drank apple cider and beer or posset, a mixture of ale, eggs and milk, when they could afford it. On the other hand, the higher class regularly enjoyed wine, spirits, such as brandy, and hypocras, an Eastern Mediterranean sweet liqueur.
Meat, Fish and Poultry
The upper class consumed a variety of shellfish and fish, including cockles, oysters, crab, cod, whiting and salmon, according to the The-Tudors.org. The nobility were also the only ones allowed to hunt and eat rabbit, deer, boar and hares. The poor could catch and eat chickens and purchase beef from the market. Swans, herons, goats, lamb, pork and beef were also readily available to the Tudor's upper class.
Produce
Wealthy Tudors ate cooked fruits with meat meals because doctors believed during this time that raw fruits initiated bodily disease, according to the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees. The rich did not consume many vegetables. The lower class grew and ate numerous vegetables, such as asparagus, peas, kale, turnips and spinach. Herbs, such as chives, parsley, thyme and sage, were used by the rich to mask unpleasant odors, to create cosmetics and to flavor sauces or gravies.
Dairy and Bread
The lower Tudor class ate breads made from rye and barley, while the upper class Tudors regularly consumed breads made from wheat. The poor made butter and hard and soft cheeses from the cows they owned. The upper class viewed these foods as inferior and did not eat cheese. The rich only used butter for food preparation, not as a condiment.
Considerations
Almost all foods eaten by the upper and lower class during the Tudor period was freshly caught or in-season. Both the poor and rich salted or pickled small amounts of meat each year to eat throughout the winter. They added spices to mask the flavor of the unpleasant-tasting meat.
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