How Real Vikings Prepared Their Meat In The Middle Ages

Ah, the mighty Vikings! The fearsome Norse invaders pillaged their way across Europe in the Middle Ages, terrorizing the populace from Ireland to modern-day Russia. Today, their legacy lives on through football teams and luxury cruise lines. But what were they like in their prime, so to speak? What did they eat, and how did they prepare it? Well, it may not surprise you to know that they ate a good amount of meat — but it may surprise you to know that much of it was dried and preserved.

When you imagine brawny, red-blooded Viking berserkers, you might be imagining them going to town on some prime roasted meat, tearing into succulent beef or pork dripping with juices. But in the Middle Ages, refrigeration was hardly widespread, even in chilly Scandinavia. That meant it was prudent for Vikings to preserve their meat and fish, which they did via a number of methods. They would use salt, whether dry or in a brine, as well as the naturally dry, chilly air of the North Atlantic. Smoke was another popular method of preservation, as odd as it is to imagine Viking invaders noshing on something like the smoked salmon you'd sample at a fancy dinner party. (Smoked salmon and lox, incidentally, are two different things.)

But what kind of meat, specifically, did Vikings eat? Well, as you might expect from a seafaring people, they ate a lot of fish. In particular, they enjoyed herring, which was often pickled in brine. (In fact, it's still eaten pickled to this day in Scandinavia, especially on New Year's Eve for luck.) But there were plenty of other fish in the sea (and lakes and rivers), including cod, mackerel, and salmon. (Unlike Vikings, you're free to cook salmon in all sorts of ways — and it's a good idea to cook it medium-rare, too.)

Vikings didn't just live on fish alone, though. While we associate Vikings with violent, pillaging raiders, there were plenty of Vikings who lived agrarian lifestyles on their farms, and they ate the same kind of meat other people in the Middle Ages ate: Beef, pork, mutton, things of that nature. They were even known to indulge in horse meat from time to time, mostly for special occasions. Thankfully, now that the only Viking you need to worry about is Erling Haaland, you don't have to eat horse meat to celebrate — just look at these five cuts of meat cheaper than filet mignon that still make a fancy dinner.