 History
of Cooking |
 |
Prehistoric
Age
|
The origins of cooking are obscure.
Primitive humans may first have savoured roast meat by chance,
when the flesh of a beast killed in a forest fire was found
to be more palatable and easier to chew and digest than the
customary raw meat. They probably did not deliberately cook
food, though, until long after they had learned to use fire
for light and warmth. |
| 9000 B.C. |
Plant cultivation begins in
the Fertile Crescent region of the Middle East. Sheep are domesticated
in the Middle East. Mesoamerican (what is now Mexico and Central
America) peoples begin domesticating plants --gourds, peppers,
avocados, and a grain, amaranth |
| 4,000 BC |
Egyptians used yeast as a leavening
agent.
Onions, radishes and garlic were the mainstay of the diet of
Egyptians who built the Great Pyramid at Gaze. This low-fat,
pungent and highly aromatic diet obviously served as fuel for
that mammoth project. |
| 3,000 BC |
Farmers of Mesapotomia were
growing crops of turnips, onions, broad beans, peas, lentils,
leeks, radishes and maybe garlic. Probably breeding ducks at
this time
The Chinese Emperor; Sung Loong Sze 'discovers' the medicinal
properties of herbs Turkey from this era have been found in
American Indian refuse sights |
3,000 BC
--
1,000 AD |
This was an active period for
food development in the Roman Empire. The agricultural revolution
during this period brought the shift to a largely grain diet.
People became loyal to their land -- the first step toward nationalism. |
| 2,000 BC |
Pomegranates are believed to
have originated in Persia. Their skins were used to dye wool.
The pomegranate was a fertility symbol in many ancient cultures,
undoubtedly because it has so many seeds. |
| 500 BC |
Sugar cane and bananas cultivated
in India. Avocados were recorded in hieroglyphics by the Mayan
Indians in southeastern Mexico and Central America. This highly
developed civilization appreciated the many virtues of this
tropical fruit, and they seemed to enjoy it in its natural state. |
| 50 BC |
Apricot trees were first cultivated
in China. From there, they made their way west to India, Armenia
and Persia. Before the 13th century, they'd made their way to
England, via Italy. Shakespeare probably enjoyed the fruit. |
| 400 AD |
Pasta, the Italian word for
dough, was probably introduced to Italy by Germanic tribes,
who invaded throughout the 5th century. The German word for
pasta -- nudel -- gave us the English word noodle. |
| 1493 |
Columbus "discovered"
pineapple on the West Indies island of Guadeloupe. The people
there called pineapple nana, meaning fragrance. This lovely
fruit wasn't introduced to Hawaii until centuries later. |
| 1621 |
The first Thanksgiving Day was
a harvest festival celebrated by the Pilgrims of Plymouth colony
in 1621. After a devastating winter in 1620, they celebrated
a successful harvest in 1621. The Pilgrims had 20 acres of corn,
grown from seeds furnished by Indians. |
| 1742 |
The first American cookbook
was published -- "The Complete Housewife" or "Accomplish't
Gentlewoman's Companion" by Eliza Smith. Its success led
to a reprint in 1764. |
| 1789 |
George Washington falls in love
with ice cream at a dinner party hosted by Mrs. Alexander Hamilton,
who served the creamy frozen dessert. Did she serve cherry flavor? |
| Sept. 26, 1830 |
Col. Robert Gibbon Johnson dispels
the common misconception that tomatoes are poisonous. He ate
tomatoes publicly on the courthouse steps in Salem, New Jersey,
on this date. Tomatoes were believed to be poisonous because
they are in the nightshade family, some members of which are
deadly. |
| March, 1850 |
Agoston Haraszthy, a legendary
Hungarian also known as the "Father of California Viticulture,"
began to plant the first of his California vineyards. He had
planted grapes in Wisconsin before that. |
| April, 1933 |
Repeal of The Volstead Act.
The end of Prohibition launched the New Beer's Eve celebration.
After 14 dry years, the US government was encouraging the drinking
of a low-alcohol (3.2 percent) beer, and breweries had geared
up for the occasion. |
| 1945 -- 1965 |
Nouvelle cuisine was born in
France, thanks to the Young Turk chefs. Expert chefs got together
and agreed it was necessary to simplify French cooking to streamline
the kitchen and appeal to modern tastes and health concerns. |
| 1963 |
Julia Child's "The French
Chef" series aired on WGBH-TV, the public television station
in Boston. After that debut, her cooking shows were so successful,
they were aired nationally. |
| October 28, 1996
|
The world celebrated the 150th
anniversary of French Chef Auguste Escoffier's birth. He was
called the King of Chefs and Chef of Kings.
|
Ancient
Brewing
An interesting discussion on the concept of brewing with hops as
it relates to ancient needs from About Ancient History Guide, N.
S. Gill.
Julia Child's
Kitchen - Smithsonian
The great Julia Child has donated her famous kitchen to the Smithsonian
Institute. Take a virtual tour and don't miss her stories.
African-American
Food History
A brief history of African-American foods, plus recipes, from Stamp
On Black History.
Antique
Roman Recipes
Recipes and discussion of ingredients and measurements, all on one
page. From Micaela Pantke.
A
Boke of Gode Cookery
Medieval recipes from period sources, with modern adaptations, facts
on food & feasting in the Middle Ages, a medieval feast presentation
and much more.
The
Book of Tea
The online text-only book by Kakuzo Okakura covers the extensive
history and cultural impact of tea. Scroll past the Project Gutenberg
introduction to begin reading.
Boston Cooking
School Cook Book
The text of Fannie Farmer's original 1918 edition of her famous
book is now completely online for your perusal courtesy of Bartleby.com.
It's plain text, nicely formatted, so it loads quickly.
Butter
History - Butter Through the Ages
Information about the history, chemistry, manufacture, and storage
of butter. Includes illustrated directions for making butter at
home. From WebExhibits and the Institute for Dynamic Educational
Advancement (IDEA).
Candy History
History articles covering candy, chocolate, American candy bars,
jelly beans and candy canes, plus a confectionary timeline. Very
well-written and organized from Candy USA.
Colonial
Williamsburg Recipes
A collection of nine traditional colonial recipes updated for today's
use, plus an interesting article on the workings of an 18th-century
tavern. From Historic Foodways Program.
Commercial
Food Timeline
A listing of commercial foods and when they came on the market.
Click on the home page to get other food history features from Robin
Johnson.
Dining
Through the Decades
David Leite covers American food from the 1900's up to the end of
the decade. Use the bar at the bottom to select the decade. Recipes
included.
Draeger's
Food History
Short historical articles covering holidays, specific dishes and
foods by Carey Draeger.
Eating
History
Betty Fussell writes interesting monthly features on food history,
hosted by Sally's Place. Don't missed the archives, located on the
same index page.
Eating
Utensils History
The history of forks, knives, spoons, and chopsticks, including
some great photos of antique eating implements from the California
Academy of Science.
The
Food Museum
A growing collection of historical articles on foods from the Eastern
and Western hemispheres, by name. You'll also find a link to articles
on edible animals.
The
Food Timeline
This timeline begins at 17,000 B.C. and ends in 1999, a work in
progress it is nicely cross-referenced with links to the pertinent
topics. From the Morris County Library.
Gallery
of Regrettable Food
A simple introduction to poorly photographed foodstuffs and horrid
recipes from the 40s, 50s, and 60s.
History
of Food in Space
This interesting article covers astronaut food over the years, from
NASA's Space Academy.
History
of Soul Food
A dissertation on the history of soul food back to its African roots
from 20th Century Fox in conjunction with its Soul Food Movie.
Islamic
Medieval Dinner
How to plan, cook, and serve a medieval Islamic feast, including
recipe links. From Cariadoc's Miscellany.
Mediterranean
Food History
Small collection of informative articles on the history of foods
in the Mediterranean from Clifford Wright.
Military
Rations History
A very comprehensive look at military food rations from the Revolutionary
War to the present from the Quartermaster Foundation.
Serve
It Forth
The online version of the newsletter about pre-17th century cooking,
culinary sources, culinary history, ingredients, food, and foodways,
including recipes.
Southern
Barbecue History
The history of Southern barbecue dating back to pre-Civil War days.
Southern
Food History
This treatise covers ethnic immigrant and native ancestral food
influences on Southern food from the University of West Florida.
Tuscan
Food History
This article covers food history of the Etruscans. You'll find the
recipe archive linked at the top in the left sidebar.
|
|
