Poultry (office)

A poultry was the office in a medieval household responsible for the purchase and preparation of poultry, as well as the room in which the poultry was stored.

It was headed by a poulter or poulterer (though this last term is more often for a merchant who deals in poultry).^[1] The office was subordinated to the kitchen, and only existed as a separate office in larger households. It was closely connected with other offices of the kitchen, such as the larder and the saucery.^[2]

This use of the word is largely obsolete today.

References

1. "poulterer". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 2008-01-20.
2. Woolgar, C. M. (1999). The Great Household in Late Medieval England. New Haven and London: Yale University Press. p. 144. ISBN 0-300-07687-8.