Food has functioned both as a source of continuity and as a subject
of adaptation in the course of human history. Onions have been a
staple of the European diet since the Paleolithic era, while the
orange is once again being cultivated in great quantities in
Southern China, where it was originally cultivated. Other
foods—such as the apple and pear in Central Asia, the tomato in
Mexico, the chili pepper in South America, and rice in South
Asia—remain staples of their original regions and of the world
diet today.Still other items are now grown in places that would
have seemed impossible in the past-bananas in geothermally heated
greenhouses in Iceland, corn on the fringes of the Gobi, and
tomatoes in space. But how did humans discover how to grow and
consume these foods in the first place? How were they chosen over
competing foods? How did they come to be so important to us? In
this charming and frequently surprising compendium, Gregory McNamee
gathers revelations from history, anthropology, chemistry, biology,
and many other fields, and spins them into entertaining tales of
discovery, complete with delicious recipes from many culinary
traditions around the world. Among the 30 types of food discussed
in the course of this alphabetically-arranged work are: the apple,
the banana, chocolate, coffee, corn, garlic, honey, millet, the
olive, the peanut, the pineapple, the plum, rice, the soybean, the
tomato, and the watermelon. All of the recipes included with these
diverse food histories have been adapted for recreation in the
modern kitchen.
General
Imprint: |
Praeger Publishers Inc
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
November 2006 |
First published: |
November 2006 |
Authors: |
Gregory McNamee
|
Dimensions: |
235 x 156 x 22mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Hardcover
|
Pages: |
216 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-275-98931-6 |
Categories: |
Books >
Sport & Leisure >
General
Promotions
|
LSN: |
0-275-98931-3 |
Barcode: |
9780275989316 |
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