Foods that Historical Soldiers Ate

Ever wonder what the heroic soldiers of the past ate?
No?...well, read on anyway!

Roman Legionnaire: Roman legionnaires drank a beverage called Posca, made by mixing apple cider vinegar with water, and sometimes adding honey. They drank it every day, with all their meals or when they were thirsty. Originally flat, round breads made of spelt (a cereal grain closely related to wheat) with a bit of salt were eaten; in higher classes also eggs, cheese and honey, along with milk and fruit. In the imperial period, around the beginning of the Common Era, bread made of wheat was introduced and with time more and more baked products began to substitute for this spelt bread. Meat was a staple part of the soldiers diet. Analysis of bones from Roman forts show that beef and veal, mutton and lamb, pork and suckling pig, and also goat meat was also eaten.

All Romans were fond of fish sauces, especially Garum. However, this was expensive and legionnaires used a cheaper variety called Muria.

Incredibly, the Romans threw everything that could not be eaten (e.g. bones and shells) onto the floor, from where it was swept away by a slave. Sounds like one of those Texas BBQ bars in El Paso with the peanut shells and sawdust on the floor.

Ancient Samurai: Rice was a staple and considered a measure of wealth (Samurai's stipends were paid in rice). Rice cakes, wrapped in large leaves, were a popular roadside treat. Samurai ate husked rice, while nobles preferred polished rice. Though they grew rice, farmers generally ate millet.