Food and Drink

Food and drink in Middle Earth are seasonal and largely regional. A small exception to the former are regions where elven influence prevails, and to the latter harbor regions. However, there, of course, is a clear limit to which and how many wares can shipped and how available they will be to average person, too. Food spoilage can be slowed by many means, but the end product will necessarily be different from the starting product: dried, smoked, salted, fermented, pickled or turned into sweet preservatives with the help of honey or sugar.

Especially during cold winter months or hot summers, depending on the region, such products will be prevalent and an important means for survival. They may also be taken along as provisions on longer journeys or military campaigns. Even elves are known to prepare special food rations for journeys, such as the light-weight, substantial Waybread.

Aside of regional climatic conditions or soil, wars or natural disasters are crucial factors that determine each harvest and with it availability. Financial and social status also inevitably have a considerable impact on dietary habits for most inhabitants of Middle Earth. More rare, exotic and time consuming to prepare foods and ingredients are often the luxury of a privileged few, while the average many might never even have seen or heard of them.

Rhûn, also famous for its cows, tea-leafs, rice and groundnuts, and the fertile regions of Harad are known for their spices, sugar cane and citrus fruits. Harad also produces wheat, dates and coffee beans. The dry and sandy grasslands of Khand, on the other hand, offer little opportunity for farming, but the mountainous regions are rich with precious salt and Khand’s burning clear sweet grass liquor is well known. The scattered inhabitants of Dunland most value their wild goats and a sour drink made from fermented milk. The best pipe-weed is produced in the Shire, the best mead and beer in Rohan, wine, olives and herbs in Gondor. Keeping no animals, relying little on agriculture and mostly on trade dwarves have become masters of preserving food.

While many inhabitants of Middle Earth are, at least to a degree self-sufficient, most tend to rely on simple, basic foods throughout the year. Different roots and nuts, beans, lentils or grains used for bread, porridge or in stews are the most common food sources. Eggs may be collected from domesticated fowl or wild birds. Meat and dairy products are rarer, reserved for special occasions or honored guests. In many regions only selected hunters or nobles are allowed to hunt and poaching will be punished. Mushrooms, fruit and vegetables are highly depended on season and climate. Coastal regions heavily rely on what they ocean provides. Rivers and lakes also offer opportunities for fishery.

Drinking water may not always be safe. The closer to Mordor the higher the risk.

Elven hospitality, with food and drink plentiful and varied, offered to anyone equally, seemingly defying the conditions of surrounding areas, the seasons or the passage of time as a whole, will seem almost otherworldly or decadent for many others for this reason, too. Some may even suspect deception or a sweet lie. Others, perhaps, will miss the simpler alternatives that they are used to. And for others yet it may simply be an impossible dream.