A Glimpse Of The Roman Food And Drink In Ancient Times
Prior to becoming an empire a Roman’s meal is a simple porridge. Early Romans were not big eaters. What the poor and the nobility ate did not differ that much too. However, as their civilization expanded so did the choices of Roman Food and Drink.
An ancient Roman’s staple food
The porridge which was made of a variety of wheat was replaced with bread. Overall, bread became the Roman’s staple food. The quality of bread depended on the quality of the flour which is in turn determined by the kind of grain used, how the millstones were set, and how fine the sifter was. Bread made of wheat flour was available only to the rich. The poor Romans still ate porridge and their bread was made of bran. Loaves were round and a bit flat.
The fruits of Rome
The Romans ate a lot of fruit especially the ones growing in their region. There are several varieties of fruit crops in the Mediterranean regions and Romans then and now eat it. The common produce are olives, dates, the mandarin orange, fruit of the fig tree, and persimmon. There were also a variety of nuts like almond, walnuts, and pistachio.
Carob was very famous in ancient Rome. This is comparable to the cocoa and is also used for chocolate-like flavors. The Carob was introduced to the Romans by the ancient Greeks. In fact, the evolution of the Roman diet was highly influenced by the Greeks whose culinary skills were more advanced than the ancient Romans.
Meat and veggies
The vegetables that Romans ate during ancient times are still being grown and eaten today. They also eat different kinds of meat ranging from game, fowl, and meat from farm animals like beef, lamb, and their most favorite, pork. Meat was exclusive to the rich as they were the only ones who can afford it. However, all Romans eat a lot of fish as well as shellfish.
What Romans drink
Romans never drank beer because it was considered barbaric since the Celts drank it. Romans drank wine. Their wine was always laced with water as it is not in their culture to drink wine straight. Romans drank calda during the winter. This is wine mixed with warm water and laced with spices. The soldiers and slaves had to make do with posca. This is ordinary vinegar diluted with water to make it drinkable.
When Rome became an empire the Romans were exposed to new food varieties and cooking techniques. Knowing the Roman Food and Drink during ancient times is very interesting because this gives modern people the chance to appreciate the evolution of man as a society.