Revisiting the “porridge feud” in 19th century Norway: How knowledge and methods from multiple disciplines may reveal new clues to historical cooking practices

Abstract

In this article, we demonstrate that approaches from food chemistry and sensory science, combined with flavour and texture descriptions made available by ethnographic accounts, provide new understanding of former culinary practices described in historical and ethnological literature. We take departure from the 19th century Norwegian “porridge feud”, a historical dispute between proponents of nutrition science and crafts-based knowledge. As a conclusion we suggest that approaches drawing on a broader set of disciplines may be productive, and probably even required, to achieve deeper understandings of the reasoning behind common cooking practices. This also has implications for collaboration, interdomain cross-pollination, and culinary practices. Science communication and the relationship between science and society are discussed through the lens of this issue in particular, and historical culinary practices in general.