Random Foods People Ate To Survive In Victorian England (14 items)

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  (#9) Marrow Toast

  Bone marrow was a relatively popular treat in the Victorian era. As a fatty, rich food, it gave Victorians savory calories. 

  Queen Victoria is reputed to have eaten marrow every day. Her one-time chef Charles Francatelli created marrow toast for her. His relatively simple recipe involves serving bone marrow, seasoned with ingredients like parsley and lemon juice, on toast.
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  (#11) Mock Turtle Soup

  Turtle soup was one of the most beloved dishes of the 18th and early 19th centuries on both sides of the Atlantic. But the essential ingredient - turtle meat - was relatively hard to come by and expensive. 

  Enterprising Victorian cooks thus made their own version of the popular soup - sans turtle. Mock turtle soup could be made with other types of meat, like calf's head. 
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  (#5) Cereals

  The 19th century saw the birth of the most popular breakfast item: cereal. American entrepreneurs like Sylvester Graham developed breakfast cereals to provide a healthy food. Some took it even further - John Kellogg developed corn flakes as a bland food to curb people's sexual impulses.

  Though processed breakfast cereal gained traction in mid-century America, Britons didn't enjoy prepared cereal until the beginning of the 20th century. Instead, British Victorians generally ate gruel, oats, and porridge.
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  (#7) Denby Dale Pie

  Civic rituals and festivals punctuated life in the Victorian era - and food played a role in such festivities. No one made celebratory food better than the community of Denby Dale in West Yorkshire. To mark national occasions, bakers in the town created giant meat and potato pies. Some of the events that warranted a giant pie were the repeal of Corn Laws in 1846 and the 50th anniversary of Queen Victoria's reign in 1887.
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  (#4) Cabbage Pie

  Working- and middle-class Victorians supplemented their diet with cheap vegetables. Cabbage in particular was affordable and a good source of nutrients. 

  The famous housekeeping expert Isabella Beeton even recommended fried cabbage as a good option for "economical" meals that would feed a whole family.
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  (#1) Royal Sovereign Strawberry

  As enthusiastic horticulturists, Victorians liked to tinker with and create their own varieties of fruit and vegetables. One of the most successful fruits to emerge in the late Victorian period was the Royal Sovereign Strawberry. Developed by Thomas Laxton in 1892, it was luscious and tasty. The strawberry was such a hit that Country Life Illustrated declared in 1899 that it was "one of the finest strawberries ever raised."

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