As we all know, ancient Greece is the source of Western civilization. If this view is indisputable, then it is natural to say that ancient Greek cooking is the source of Western food civilization. In addition to the inheritance of various civilizations, the more direct reason is The main foods of ancient Greece, cooking methods, especially the pattern and variety of meals, directly affect the food and cooking of many western countries. If you want to understand Western food civilization, you have to know ancient Greek cooking to a certain extent.
For Greek food. There are three basic elements that are the most important to the ancient Greek meal: bread, wine, and olive oil. This is part of the diet model or what is called diet ideology. For the Greeks, these foods represent frugality, a simple life, and sweetness. Greek think that this represents the loyalty and love of Greece. So there is no need to import rare luxury foods. It is also believed that this is related to the area that should be conquered; wherever olives and vines grow, they should be conquered and become Greeks.
Bread is a necessity in the ancient Greek diet. The Greeks have a variety of bread or bread-like products, which are also made for special occasions. In Ancient Greek, there were 50 to 70 different types of bread. Such as leavened bread (prepared with flour, water, and yeast), unleavened bread (made with flour and water), semolina bread (made with ultra-fine flour coming from fine-quality wheat), and so forth. We get the information from the ancient documents that the ancient Greeks were offering food to the gods. They call it artos theogonos, the bread of the gods. Our lasting relationship with wheat and bread has also been adored by the goddess Demeter, who is the provider of this great product. It was during the Thesmophoria festival that the ancient Greeks offered large loaves of bread in the Demeter temple (this is also the reason why it was called Megalartia, which means the feast of bread).
Now in Modern Greece bread is an extremely important part of daily Greek cuisine. Even foreign cereals have become integral to the modern Greek diet. When you go to a tavern in modern Greece. It is common that they will provide you with a whole loaf of bread. In total bread is the heart of the Greek diet.
For the ancient Greeks, wine is particularly important to social life. The symposium is about drinking, listening to music, and conducting intellectual discussions. So the Greeks gave it medicinal value, and some even described proper and inappropriate drinking. In the writings of ancient Greek writers or poets, wines are "sweet", "dry" and "sour", and they can be either white or red. More sour wines are mostly made from grapes that are not fully ripe because this can increase the acidity of the wine. In addition, because ancient wine storage equipment was not advanced, its wine would be oxidized very quickly, which caused the best-quality wines in ancient Greece to be red wines with such strong antioxidant capacity. In addition, because they are mostly exposed to oxygen, ancient Greek wines often have a nutty aroma or a sweet aroma similar to brown sugar. Also in Homer's epic poem "Odyssey", such a sweet red wine with a rich aroma is recorded, and its style is similar to the Amarone Della Valpolicecella（dark red color and sweet taste.） in Italy. Homer believes that this wine is produced in northern Greece and is made from grapes that have been dried on straw mats. Therefore, the wine has a higher alcohol content and a sweet taste.
Many modern wine production practices today are still influenced by the practices of ancient Greeks. Wine is also a very important part of Greek culture today. Gone are the days when Greece was only known for its retsina (resin-added wine). But today, Greece can still use Greek grape varieties to produce high-quality wines. These grape varieties seem to be similar to those used in ancient times and are only grown in Greece. Now people in other countries have begun to notice some of the qualities of Greek wine. We can see the mysterious purple light cast in the deep ruby color from the bottle. The aromas of woody and red berries combine perfectly with the aromas of plum and blackberry. The entrance is round, the wine is velvety and mellow, with a sweet aftertaste. In the previous Decanter World Wine Awards, 72% of all Greek wines shortlisted this year won the grand prize. So the wind is more like the mind of the ancient Greek diet.
According to Greek mythology, the olive tree in Greece grew from a seed planted by the goddess of peace and wisdom, Athena, and Athena became the protector of Athens. The olive tree in Greece is not only full of mysterious legends but also deeply loved by the Greek people a long time ago. Olive oil was the only oil used for cooking. According to ancient Greek customs, when a Greek child was born, the family would plant an olive tree. When the child is growing up, the olive tree begins to bear fruit as well. So the little olive tree will grow with the Greek children. This experience also played an important role in the life of the Greeks. It's made olive oil closer to ancient Greece. According to legend, the prize of the ancient Greek Olympic Games champion was 5 tons of olive oil.
In modern times olive oil is more important to the Greeks than in ancient Greece. And the Greeks are the world's highest consumer of olive oil, consuming 26 liters of olive oil per person per year. Almost all Greek cooking uses olive oil. Although people have been trying to promote other types of vegetable oils, they have not been convinced. If the bread is the heart of the Greek diet. Then the olive oil is the soul of it.
Conclusion:
To study the folk customs of a nation, you need to know the essential part of its daily life-food cultural etiquette. From it, we can also discover the trajectory of its social and political values and laws. At the same time, changes in all aspects of an era, whether climatic or political, will be indirectly reflected in the food culture and customs of the time. Studying the etiquette and custom of ancient Greek food culture is also a useful extension and supplement to the study of ancient Greek history.
Resources:
Greek eating hobbies
Wine in the Ancient Mediterranean https://www.ancient.eu/article/944/wine-in-the-ancient-mediterranean/
Olive Oil Uses Throughout The Ages https://morocco-gold.com/about-morocco-gold/olive-oil-culture/#:~:text=Olive%20oil%20was%20used%20to,were%20crowned%20with%20its%20leaves.&text=In%20ancient%20battles%2C%20olive%20branches%20were%20used%20to%20crown%20the%20victors.
History of Bread
https://fournosveneti.gr/en/the-history-of-bread/#:~:text=In%20ancient%20Greece%2C%20bread%20was%20prepared%20and%20baked%20at%20home.&text=Amongst%20different%20bread%20types%20produced,wheat)%2C%20and%20so%20forth.
Comments