Posted on 04/20/2023 3:27:44 PM PDT by DallasBiff
Henry VIII, who ruled England from 1509 until his death in 1547, was known for his voracious appetite. Portraits of Henry show a man almost as wide as he was tall. When he wasn't marrying, divorcing, or beheading his wives (he was on his sixth marriage when he died at age 58), this medieval ruler dined like a glutton.
He enjoyed banquets so much that he extended the kitchen of Hampton Court Palace to fill 55 rooms. The 200 members of the kitchen staff provided meals of up to 14 courses for the 600 people in the king's court. Here are some dishes served at a typical feast.
1. Spit-Roasted Meat
Spit-roasted meat -- usually a pig or boar -- was eaten at every meal. It was an expression of extreme wealth because only the rich could afford fresh meat year-round; only the very rich could afford to roast it, since this required much more fuel than boiling; and only the super wealthy could pay a "spit boy" to turn the spit all day. In a typical year, the royal kitchen served 1,240 oxen, 8,200 sheep, 2,330 deer, 760 calves, 1,870 pigs, and 53 wild boar. That's more than 14,000 large animals, meaning each member of the court was consuming about 23 animals every year.
2. Grilled Beavers' Tails
These tasty morsels were particularly popular on Fridays, when according to Christian tradition, it was forbidden to eat meat. Rather conveniently, medieval people classified beavers as fish.
3. Whale Meat
Another popular dish for Fridays, whale meat was fairly common and cheap, due to the plentiful supply of whales in the North Sea, each of which could feed hundreds of people. It was typically served boiled or very well roasted.
4. Whole Roasted Peacock
(Excerpt) Read more at recipes.howstuffworks.com ...
2. Grilled Beavers’ Tails.
They ate WHAT?
Thanks for posting this; it’s very interesting; though NOT a repast I’d care to eat much of!
“When he wasn’t marrying, divorcing, or beheading his wives…” and let us not forget “drawing, quartering and disemboweling Catholics.”
“Hey Grandpa, what’s for supper?”
Just got a cookbook, “Tasting History” with historical recipes dating back to ancient Babylon and up through 1900. A lot of the recipes sound tasty.
Black pudding! Just what the doctor didn’t order. *Blech*
Don’t be squeamish. I’d try all of it. Not a fan of marzipan.
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I eat ox tail broth 3 x wk....great nourishment and boy is it good.
The roasted beast sounds good, but hold the spit.
Yes. Indeed.
And following Catholic, and Protestant Kings, and Queens continued the persecution of different faiths.
Cool man.
Reason # 1 The United States does Not have an official religion.
Folks wanted to escape the Psychos in Europe, and for that matter the rest of the world that found freedom in this country.
Duh.
“Folks wanted to escape the Psychos in Europe, and for that matter the rest of the world that found freedom in this country.”
Actually many of those supposedly fleeing “Psychos” in Europe were psychos themselves. The Puritans, for instance, persecuted people in Great Britain AFTER their fellow Puritans fled England for America. You know only psychos would ban Christmas celebrations - and the Puritans did. https://www.mass.gov/doc/penalty-for-keeping-christmas/download
I’ve had black pudding. It’s fantastic with scrambled eggs.
Not one of my favorites but it’s passable
No birthday party for you
Where’s the Snickers bars? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yuouH4U_6c
I agree, sounds off, tastes great.
I had it on a trip to Wales while at a B&B in Llangollen.
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