Byzantine Culture

History · Guide

Byzantine Cuisine and Food

Discover Byzantine cuisine and food, from the bread and wine of the imperial table to the simple fare of the peasant. Explore the recipes, the ingredients, and the religious fasts of the medieval Mediterranean.

Byzantine cuisine was a Mediterranean cuisine, drawing on the traditions of Greece, Rome, and the wider eastern Mediterranean. The Byzantines inherited a sophisticated culinary tradition from the classical world, enriched by the trade in spices and other luxury goods from the East, and adapted to the rhythms of the Orthodox Christian calendar, with its elaborate system of fasts and feasts. The Byzantine table, from the imperial banquets of the Great Palace to the simple fare of the peasant, was a constant presence in the life of the empire, and the foods the Byzantines ate, the wines they drank, and the rules they observed in eating and drinking were central to their identity.

This exploration of Byzantine cuisine examines the principal foods and drinks of the Byzantine world, the elaborate imperial banquets, the simple meals of the peasants, the religious fasts that shaped the Byzantine year, and the legacy of Byzantine cuisine in the modern Mediterranean diet.

The Foundations of Byzantine Cuisine

Mediterranean Inheritance

Byzantine cuisine was rooted in the Mediterranean triad of bread, wine, and olive oil. The staples of the Byzantine diet were bread, made from wheat or barley and consumed at every meal; wine, drunk in diluted form, since the Byzantines considered undiluted wine barbaric; and olive oil, used in cooking and as a fuel for lamps. These three staples, supplemented by vegetables, legumes, fruits, cheese, fish, and occasionally meat, formed the basis of the Byzantine diet for more than a thousand years.

The Mediterranean climate of the Byzantine world, with its hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters, was well suited to the cultivation of wheat, olives, and grapes, and these crops were the foundation of the Byzantine agricultural economy. The great plains of Anatolia, Egypt, Syria, and North Africa produced abundant grain, the hills of Greece and the Aegean produced olives and olive oil, and the vineyards of Thrace, Macedonia, and Asia Minor produced wine for the imperial court and the export trade.

The Spice Trade

Byzantine cuisine was enriched by the trade in spices and other luxury goods from the East. The Byzantines were the principal intermediaries in the spice trade between the East and the West, and they imported pepper, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, and other spices from India, Southeast Asia, and China. These spices, which were extremely expensive in the West, were used in the imperial kitchens to season the elaborate dishes of the court, and they were also used in the cuisine of the wealthy.

The spice trade was a major source of imperial revenue. The Byzantines regulated the trade, taxed the merchants, and at times attempted to monopolize the most valuable spices. The trade continued even after the Arab conquests of the seventh century, with the Byzantines buying spices from Arab and Indian merchants and re-exporting them to the West. The fall of Constantinople in 1453 disrupted the trade and led eventually to the search for new sea routes to Asia.

The Imperial Table

Court Banquets

The imperial court maintained an elaborate cuisine, served on gold and silver plate, with a vast array of dishes prepared by teams of cooks. The De Ceremoniis of Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos, which prescribed the procedures of the imperial court in minute detail, includes a description of the imperial banquets, with the order of the dishes, the seating of the guests, and the ceremonial accompanying the meals.

The imperial banquet typically began with a series of appetizers, including olives, cheeses, salted fish, and vegetables. The main course included several kinds of meat, including roasts of pork, lamb, and goat, often served in elaborate sauces flavored with wine, vinegar, and spices. Fish and seafood were also served, especially in coastal regions. The meal was accompanied by a variety of breads, including the standard bread of the meal and special breads for particular occasions. The banquet concluded with sweets and fruits, including honey cakes, fruit preserves, and fresh fruits in season.

The wines served at the imperial banquet were of the highest quality. The vineyards of Thrace, Macedonia, and Asia Minor produced a variety of wines, including the famous wines of Monemvasia in the southern Peloponnese, which were exported to all parts of the Mediterranean. The wines were typically diluted with water, often in a ratio of one part wine to two or three parts water, and they were served in elaborate vessels of gold, silver, or glass.

Specific Dishes

The imperial cuisine included many specific dishes that have been preserved in Byzantine recipe books and in the accounts of foreign visitors. The most famous is the so-called “imperial cake,” a rich dessert made with honey, sesame, and pepper. Other famous dishes included the porphyry, a sauce made with fish roe, vinegar, and spices; the oxygaron, a sauce of vinegar and fish stock; the oenogaros, a wine sauce; and the moretum, a cheese spread with herbs and spices.

The cookbook tradition of the Byzantine world is represented by a few surviving manuscripts, including the so-called Apicius manuscript, which is a Latin text but which preserves many recipes that were also current in the Greek-speaking world. The Greek cookbook tradition is less well preserved, but the descriptions of meals in the historians, the saints’ lives, and the legal texts give a rich picture of the cuisine of the empire.

The Peasant Table

Simple Fare

The peasant’s table was much simpler than the imperial banquet. The staple was bread, often made from barley rather than wheat, and served at every meal. The bread was accompanied by a few vegetables, often grown in the household garden, and by cheese, olives, and olive oil. Meat was rare, reserved for feast days and special occasions, and fish was eaten in coastal regions.

The peasant’s wine was a local production, often of poor quality, and was drunk in greater quantity than the wine of the imperial court. Beer was also consumed in the northern provinces, where the climate was less suited to viticulture. The peasant’s table included a variety of pulses, including lentils, beans, and chickpeas, which were important sources of protein, especially during the long fasts of the Orthodox year.

The peasant household was largely self-sufficient in food, with the family producing most of what it consumed. Surplus production was sold at the local market, and the peasant household bought a few items that it could not produce, including salt, iron tools, and certain luxury goods. The market town was the center of the local food economy, with weekly markets and annual fairs where the peasants sold their surplus production and bought the goods they needed.

Religious Fasts

The Orthodox Calendar of Fasts

The Orthodox Christian calendar included four major fasting periods, in addition to the weekly fasts of Wednesdays and Fridays. The Great Lent, the most important fasting period, lasted for seven weeks before Easter, with a strict fast that excluded not only meat but also fish, dairy products, eggs, and olive oil. The fast of the Dormition, in August, lasted for two weeks. The fast of the Apostles, in June, varied in length according to the date of Pentecost. The fast of the Advent, in December, lasted for forty days before Christmas.

The fasts were a defining feature of Byzantine religious life, and they shaped the cuisine of the empire in important ways. The fasts encouraged the production and consumption of vegetables, legumes, and fish, and they discouraged the consumption of meat and dairy products. The cuisine of the fasts, often called ” Lenten cuisine,” was a sophisticated tradition in its own right, with its own dishes, recipes, and rituals.

The fasts were observed with varying strictness by different classes. The imperial court observed the fasts in principle, although the imperial kitchen always had access to the finest foods, and the observation of the fasts in the imperial palace was often more formal than substantive. The monasteries observed the fasts with great strictness, often going beyond the canonical requirements. The peasantry observed the fasts as best they could, with the fasts being most rigorous in the cities and least rigorous in the countryside.

Specific Foods and Dishes

Bread and Cereal Foods

Bread was the most important food in the Byzantine diet, and it was consumed at every meal. The standard bread was a round loaf of wheat or barley, baked in a household or community oven. Special breads were prepared for feast days, including the artos, a large round loaf used in the celebration of the liturgy, and the prosphora, a smaller loaf used in the preparation of the Eucharist.

The Byzantines also produced a variety of cereal foods, including porridge, gruel, and a kind of cracked wheat called tsoureki, which was often served at the imperial table. Cereal foods were important especially during the fasts, when they were often the only permitted food.

Fish and Seafood

Fish and seafood were important in the Byzantine diet, especially in coastal regions and during the fasts. The most common fish were small fish such as anchovies, sardines, and herring, which were preserved by salting or by being packed in brine. Larger fish, including tuna, swordfish, and sturgeon, were also consumed, especially by the wealthy. Seafood, including oysters, mussels, and shrimp, was popular in coastal regions.

The Byzantines used a fermented fish sauce called garum, which was inherited from the Roman tradition. Garum was used as a condiment, much as modern cooks use soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce, and it was an important element of Byzantine cooking. The garum was produced in coastal regions, especially in the Black Sea, and it was exported throughout the empire.

Meat and Game

Meat was a luxury in the Byzantine diet, consumed most often by the wealthy and on feast days. The most common meats were pork, lamb, and goat, with beef being less common because of the importance of cattle for agricultural work. Game, including venison, wild boar, and hare, was also consumed, especially by the aristocracy, who hunted in the forests and game reserves of the empire.

The imperial kitchens produced elaborate meat dishes, often in the form of roasts, stews, and pies. The most famous was the so-called “imperial meat,” a dish of pork or lamb prepared with wine, vinegar, and spices, often served at the imperial banquet. The monks, who did not eat meat, prepared elaborate vegetarian dishes, often based on legumes, vegetables, and grains, that were a sophisticated tradition in their own right.

Sweets and Desserts

The Byzantines had a sweet tooth, and the production of sweets and desserts was a major industry. The most important sweeteners were honey and the syrups made from grapes, figs, and dates. Sugar, imported from the East, was a luxury used in the imperial kitchen and in the monasteries. The Byzantines produced a variety of sweets, including honey cakes, sesame cakes, fruit preserves, and pastries. The most famous was the so-called “Byzantine cake,” a layered cake made with honey, nuts, and spices.

Fruits were also important in the Byzantine diet. The Byzantines cultivated a wide variety of fruits, including grapes, figs, pomegranates, oranges, lemons, peaches, apricots, and apples. The fruits were consumed fresh, dried, or preserved in honey or syrup. The fruit syrups, especially the grape syrup, were used in cooking and as sweeteners.

Drinking Culture

Wine

Wine was the standard drink of the Byzantine world, and it was produced throughout the empire. The Byzantines had a sophisticated knowledge of viticulture and winemaking, with detailed treatises on the subject by writers like Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos and Michael Psellos. The wines of the empire were of varying quality, with the most prestigious being the wines of Monemvasia, the wines of Thrace, and the wines of Asia Minor.

The Byzantines typically diluted their wine with water, often in a ratio of one part wine to two or three parts water. The dilution was seen as a sign of civilization, since the consumption of undiluted wine was considered a barbarian practice. The wine was often flavored with herbs and spices, including rosemary, thyme, and mint, and it was sometimes sweetened with honey. Resinated wine, in which pine resin was added to the wine, was also popular, and the practice has been preserved in modern Greek retsina.

The imperial court maintained a large wine cellar, and the consumption of wine at the imperial banquet was a carefully regulated affair. The wines were served in elaborate vessels, and the order of the wines was prescribed by court protocol. The wines were often gifts from foreign rulers, and the imperial cellar contained wines from all parts of the empire and beyond.

Other Beverages

In addition to wine, the Byzantines drank a variety of other beverages. Beer was consumed in the northern provinces, especially in the Balkans and the Danubian lands, where the climate was less suited to viticulture. The beer of the Byzantines was a barley beer, often flavored with herbs and spices, and it was a popular drink among the lower classes and the soldiers.

The Byzantines also drank a variety of fruit juices and soft drinks, including the so-called “oxymel,” a mixture of vinegar and honey, which was considered a healthy drink. The monasteries produced a variety of herbal teas, often based on local herbs and used for medicinal purposes.

The Legacy of Byzantine Cuisine

Influence on the Modern Mediterranean Diet

The legacy of Byzantine cuisine is most clearly visible in the modern Mediterranean diet, which is the basis of the traditional cuisines of Greece, Turkey, the Balkans, and the Levant. The staples of the Byzantine diet — bread, wine, olive oil, vegetables, legumes, fish, and a moderate amount of meat and dairy — are the staples of the modern Mediterranean diet, and the principles of Byzantine cooking — the use of fresh, local ingredients, the importance of olive oil, the moderate consumption of meat, and the regular fasting — are the principles of the modern Mediterranean diet.

The Byzantine legacy is also visible in the specific dishes of the modern Mediterranean. The honey cakes of Byzantium are the baklava and the kataifi of modern Greek and Turkish cuisine. The Byzantine legume dishes are the fava and the revithada of modern Greek cuisine. The Byzantine fish dishes are the psari plaki and the marides of the modern Aegean kitchen. The Byzantine wine tradition continues in the wines of modern Greece, including the famous retsina, the descendant of the resinated wine of Byzantium.

Influence on Western European Cuisine

Byzantine cuisine also influenced the cuisine of medieval and early modern Western Europe, although the influence is less well documented. The Byzantines introduced several foods to the West, including the use of sugar in cooking, the technique of pasta-making, and the use of certain spices. The Crusaders, who traveled through the Byzantine Empire on their way to the Holy Land, brought back recipes and ingredients that they had encountered in the East, and these influenced the development of Western European cuisine.

The most important influence of Byzantine cuisine on the West was through the cuisine of Sicily and southern Italy, which were Byzantine territories for centuries. The cuisine of southern Italy, with its emphasis on pasta, olive oil, and vegetables, is in large part a Byzantine inheritance, transmitted through the Norman rulers of Sicily and the Venetian and Genoese traders of the Mediterranean.

Conclusion

Byzantine cuisine was one of the great culinary traditions of the medieval Mediterranean. From the elaborate banquets of the imperial court to the simple fare of the peasant household, the food the Byzantines ate, the wines they drank, and the rules they observed in eating and drinking were central to their identity. The tradition they established has shaped the cuisine of the eastern Mediterranean for more than a thousand years, and the legacy of Byzantine cuisine remains one of the most important elements of the modern Mediterranean diet.

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