Random Medieval Junk Foods (13 items)

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  (#10) In Bristol, Cook's Row Served Up Fast Food

  In many urban areas, one street became known as the fast food capital for the city. In Bristol, Cook's Row catered to customers looking for fast, tasty food. The cookshops offered all kinds of food, including geese, rabbits, and fish. Customers could pick up some cooked chicken on Cook's Row and buy a loaf of bread from a nearby baker to make a meal.

  In London, cookshops sold all kinds of foods, including roasted and fried meats. They also offered pies, pancakes, and hot cakes. 

  Bristol's cookshops had their own hearths, where they stewed meat or roasted it on a spit. These shops sat directly on the street, where customers could smell the foods and grab a bite to eat. 
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  (#3) Honey Was More Common Than Sugar For Satisfying A Sweet Tooth

  Sugar was expensive during most of the medieval period, putting it outside the reach of most people. Instead of using sugar in sweets, many recipes called for honey.

  One fritter recipe from England stuffed fried dough with gingered almonds and topped the fritter with honey. Another recipe called for honeyed fritters with herbs.

  Gingerbread was another common medieval sweet that used honey. In one gingerbread recipe, the cook started by clarifying honey and then stirring bread crumbs into the honey and letting it simmer. Spices like ginger, cloves, and pepper gave the gingerbread a strong, sweet flavor.
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  (#7) Funnel Cake Made Its First Appearance As A Junk Food Par Excellence

  When it came to sweets, medieval Europeans loved custards, cakes, and fritters. In fact, funnel cakes made their first appearance in the medieval era. 

  According to a medieval cookbook, the English loved fritters of all kinds. Some recipes called for figs, apples, and almonds as fritter ingredients. The first funnel cakes were called cryspes, or fried cakes topped with sugar. 

  Because medieval ingredients were more limited than today, Europeans got creative with their fritters, even frying up sweetened cottage cheese and calling it fritter of milk. 
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  (#5) Poor Londoners Bought Take-Out Because They Didn't Have Hearths

  Across Europe, the poor were the most likely to visit cookshops, the medieval equivalent of a fast food drive-through. 

  In London, people visited cookshops close to the Thames, which catered to travelers and merchants, and in poor neighborhoods. In these neighborhoods, people packed into tenement housing that often lacked a hearth, meaning they couldn't cook at home. Instead, people went to cookshops and bought take-out.

  Cookshops weren't just a European phenomenon. In 12th-century Jerusalem, residents named one area "the Street of Evil Cooking" because of all the cookshops. 
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  (#9) Desserts Were So Important That The Word 'Dessert' Came Into Being

  What kinds of junk food desserts did medieval Europeans eat? According to an English cookbook called Cariadoc's Miscellany, people loved all kinds of tarts. The crisp crust might be topped with berries, fruits, or ginger. 

  The English also ate a dessert called cuskynoles, a sweet ravioli filled with fruit. Gingerbread and cheesecake were popular dessert treats, as were cakes and cookies. 

  In fact, desserts were so popular that the word "dessert" traces its origins back to the end of the medieval era. By the mid-16th century, the French used the word dessert to mean "last course," from the word desservir, which meant "to clear the table." In English, the word came to mean the final course of fruits and sweets that people ate after their meal. 
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  (#8) Pretzels Became A Tasty Symbol Of Good Luck

  Soft pretzels were a popular treat in medieval Europe. They also carried the seal of approval from the Catholic Church, since the medieval pretzel recipe called for just three simple ingredients: water, flour, and salt. During fasting periods, when the church banned animal products, pretzels offered a flavorful alternative.

  Monks sometimes handed out pretzels to children who recited their prayers. As pretzels grew in popularity, they became a symbol of good luck and prosperity. Thanks to their link with the church, pretzels also became a sign of spiritual health. In some areas, people distributed pretzels to the poor.

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