Today, the Vikings are celebrated as a proud, warlike folk, well known for their mythology and elaborate funerals. The Viking diet, however, is a mystery to most people. What did these warriors eat to survive in such a forbidding landscape? As it turns out, their food was healthy, fresh, and even a poor Viking ate much better than an English peasant during the Middle Ages. That’s not to say that the Viking diet didn’t have inadequacies, but on the whole, the Viking diet was a model of efficiency and innovation in a time when cooks had to make the most out of some very limited ingredients.
A major benefit of the Viking diet was the fact that every level of society, from kings to common sailors, ate meat every day. Often this would have been pork, as hogs were easy to raise and quick to mature, but Vikings also ate beef, mutton and goats. Horses were also raised for food, a practice that led to later clashes with Christian leaders, as horsemeat was a forbidden food under church doctrine. Vikings were avid hunters, and would capture reindeer, elk and even bear to bring back to the hearth fires. And of course, since Vikings spent so much time on the water, fish formed a major part of their diet. Herrings were abundant, and prepared in a plethora of ways: dried, salted, smoked, pickled and even preserved in whey.
While we might tend to think of Vikings standing over huge roasting pits with joints of mutton dripping onto hot coals, evidence suggests roasting and frying weren’t the favored cooking methods of the time. In fact, Vikings most often boiled their meats. Indeed, the centerpiece of the day’s meals was a boiled meat stew, called skause.
As meats and vegetables were taken out of the pot, new ones were added, and the broth became concentrated over days of cooking. Skause was eaten with bread baked with all sorts of grains, beans and even tree bark–birch bark can be dried and ground and is actually very nutritious. Vikings used old bread dough to make sourdough loaves, and would also use soured milk and buttermilk to enrich their breads.
Vegetables and fruits were much more wild than any of our modern varieties. Carrots would have been added to the daily skause, but they weren’t orange; white carrots were the only ones available. Viking farmers cultivated cabbages, beans, peas and endive, and wild apples and berries were also available to Middle Age diners. A wide range of herbs and seasonings helped flavor Viking food, with spices like coriander, cumin, mustard and wild horseradish making an appearance at the table.
Despite the overall balanced nature of the Viking diet, there were some major pitfalls. We know from archeological excavations of Viking cesspits and sewers that most Vikings suffered from parasites in their intestines: Bluntly put, they had worms. And the same cesspit excavations revealed undigested seeds from the whole wheat breads Vikings ate, some of which came from weeds that are highly poisonous to humans.
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FAQs
Staple Foods: Cereals like barley, rye, and oats were fundamental, providing the base for bread, porridge, and ale. Dairy: Cheese, butter, and skyr (a type of yogurt) were important sources of fat and protein. Meat and Fish: Pork, beef, lamb, and a variety of fish and seafood were commonplace.
How many meals did the Vikings eat per day? ›
Unlike modern Norwegians, Vikings tended to only eat two meals per day. These were known as dagmal and nattmal, which meant a day meal and night meal.
Is the Viking diet healthy? ›
Healthy Everyday Eating with Nordic Flair
Despite being labeled as gluttonous by the English, their diet wasn't about indulgence, but rather sustenance for their active lifestyle. Their diet, rich in natural and unprocessed foods, fueled their energy and built muscle.
What was the Viking morning meal? ›
Typical Viking Meals
Dagmal was the morning meal in which the adults would eat leftover stew from the night before with bread and fruit. The children would usually have porridge and dried fruit or, on occasion, buttermilk and bread.
What did Vikings eat to get so big? ›
The Viking Age was not a time in which to worry about the fat content of food. The Vikings needed all the energy that they could get in the form of fat – especially in winter. Meat, fish, vegetables, cereals and milk products were all an important part of their diet.
What nuts did Vikings eat? ›
Vikings did not rely on the same set of dried fruits and nuts as did later Europeans. One really basic way to readjust a feast (or a camp kitchen) toward a Viking food aesthetic is to replace your other dried fruits with prunes and cherries, your almonds with hazelnuts and walnuts.
Did Vikings eat pizza? ›
Surprisingly the Norse diet consisted of a lot of herbs and spices that we now consider Mediterranean tastes today. That still doesn't mean they ate Pizza! The Icelandic historian, poet, and politician Snorri Sturluson (AD 1178-1241) mentioned the bread dish – brauddiskar – in his sagas.
Did Vikings eat eggs? ›
They ate beef, goat, pork, mutton, lamb, chicken and duck and occasionally horsemeat. The chickens and ducks produced eggs, so the Vikings ate their eggs as well as eggs gathered from wild seabirds. . Because most Vikings lived on the coast, they ate all kinds of fish, both ocean-going and freshwater fish.
Did Vikings eat oatmeal? ›
The Vikings had several options, when it came to making porridge. It could be made from barley, oats, buckwheat or millet. They mixed berries and apples into the porridge to add sweetness. Porridge was typically part of the daily food intake, especially that of the poor.
What would Vikings drink? ›
The Vikings drank strong beer at festive occasions, together with the popular drink of mead. Mead was a sweet, fermented drink made from honey, water and spices.
Dairy would have made a frequent appearance in many a Viking diet. The seafaring warriors were farmers, after all, and skilled at animal husbandry. Cows and sheep did provide meat, but they also gave the Vikings a reliable supply of buttermilk, cheese, butter, and other products.
How did Vikings get vitamin D? ›
Before the Vikings or early settlers went to the fishing grounds in the morning, they used to have some cod liver oil from the container each morning.” Cod liver oil has long been revered as an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin D, and omega 3s.
What fish did the Vikings eat? ›
Serra's research indicates that fish was among the most common foods eaten during Viking times. This largely consisted of cod, plaice, herring and halibut caught along the long Scandinavian coastline. These catches were dried as well as traded and brought inland.
What spices did Vikings use? ›
A wide range of herbs and seasonings helped flavor Viking food, with spices like coriander, cumin, mustard and wild horseradish making an appearance at the table.
What was Ragnar's diet? ›
Studies suggest a 3:1 or 4:1 carbohydrate-to-protein ratio, especially following a run longer than an hour. Shakes are easy to digest and don't take up much room. You can also bring recovery protein powder and mix with water for a quick recovery drink. Ragnar is a true, one-of-a-kind adventure.
What are the restrictions of the Nordic diet? ›
This dietary pattern is also characterized by low consumption of highly processed foods, red meats and vegetable oils other than EVOO, so it is poor in saturated FAs (SFAs), industrially produced trans fats and simple sugars.
What is a typical Nordic diet? ›
The Nordic diet encourages you to eat a lot of whole foods, particularly sourced locally and in season, including: Whole grains, particularly rye, barley and oats. Fruits, especially berries. Vegetables, especially root vegetables like beets, turnips and carrots. Fatty fish like salmon, tuna, sardines and mackerel.
What was the Viking calorie intake? ›
The Viking diet was, therefore, based on a great caloric intake (the average Viking consumed around 2,000 calories per day) derived from proteins. They also ate a lot of fish, including herring, mackerel, and cod, but meat and fish were not the only sources of food.
