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A glossary of forgotten foods

Barm

The living yeast foam skimmed from brewing beer — how bakers raised bread before packet yeast existed. sourdough lessons from 1800s, bread beer dawn agriculture

Blancmange

Not a pudding: the original was shredded chicken with rice and almond milk, and it was served at every great table. top 10 medieval foods explained, forgotten medieval feast dishes

Chisaya mama (quinoa)

The Inca "mother grain" — not a cereal at all, and the crop that made farming the high Andes possible. andean kitchens before potato, beyond corn chili mesoamerican kitchens

Colatura di alici

The anchovy liquid still made on the Amalfi coast — the closest living relative of Roman garum. garum roman fish sauce, spice routes lost foods fallen empires tayi

Defrutum

Grape must boiled down to a dark, sweet syrup — the Roman kitchen's sugar, colouring and body all at once. lost ancient roman sauces, ancient roman recipes to cook at home, byzantine banquets real story

Douchi

Salted, fermented black soybeans — the umami engine of the Han-dynasty kitchen, and the ancestor of soy sauce. ancient chinese food han dynasty, silk road food trade routes

Einkorn

The oldest cultivated wheat — "single grain", genetically the simplest, and barely able to make a loaf. ancient grains bakers guide, bread beer dawn agriculture

Emmer

One of the first domesticated wheats — the grain of Egyptian bread, Roman puls and the Fertile Crescent. ancient grains bakers guide, ancient egyptian bread and beer, what did romans eat daily

Fonio

West Africa's tiny, fast-growing "hungry rice" — ready in weeks, and one of the oldest cereals in cultivation. africa ancient grains fonio teff rediscover, ancient grains bakers guide

Frumenty

Cracked wheat cooked in broth or milk, gilded with saffron — the medieval feast's default accompaniment. forgotten medieval feast dishes, top 10 medieval foods explained

Garum

The fermented fish sauce that seasoned nearly every Roman dish — the empire's salt and stock in a single bottle. garum roman fish sauce, lost ancient roman sauces, what did romans eat daily

Grains of paradise

A peppery, faintly floral West African spice that medieval Europe adored and modern kitchens abandoned. forgotten medieval feasts flavour building, lost spice flavors

Gruit

The herb mixture that flavoured beer before hops — and the tax that came with it. what did people drink middle ages, bread beer dawn agriculture

Hardtack

Flour and water baked until nearly all moisture is gone — the edible foundation of the Age of Sail. age of sail sailors food, viking longship rations cdjx

Helvahane

The Ottoman palace's dedicated sweet kitchen — a confectionery workshop inside Topkapı. ottoman court desserts lost recipes f00k, abbasid baghdad golden age cuisine

Hippocras

Spiced, sweetened wine strained through a cloth sleeve — the drink that closed a medieval feast. medieval hipocras spiced wine, what did people drink middle ages

Long pepper

The pepper the West forgot — hotter, sweeter and more complex than the black peppercorn that replaced it. lost spice flavors, silk road food trade routes

Marchpane

The Tudor sugar-and-almond showpiece: a decorated disc, gilded and iced, eaten at the banquet course. tudor marchpane banquet sugar sculpture, forgotten medieval feast dishes

Masa

The nixtamalized maize dough at the base of tortillas, tamales and most of the Mesoamerican kitchen. what did aztecs eat daily food, beyond corn chili mesoamerican kitchens

Maslin

Wheat and rye sown together in one field — medieval crop insurance, baked into a loaf. what did medieval peasants eat, top 10 medieval foods explained

Melas zomos (black broth)

The Spartan dish of pork boiled with blood and vinegar that the rest of Greece could not stomach. ancient sparta black broth, ancient greek symposium food wine

Milpa

Maize, beans and squash grown together — a farming system that feeds the soil as well as the people. beyond corn chili mesoamerican kitchens, what did aztecs eat daily food

Moretum

A pounded Roman cheese-and-herb paste, described in a poem about a poor farmer's breakfast. ancient roman recipes to cook at home, what did romans eat daily

Nixtamalization

Cooking maize in an alkaline solution of lime or wood ash — the technique that made a maize civilisation possible. what did aztecs eat daily food, beyond corn chili mesoamerican kitchens

Pech

The great Russian masonry oven — a heat store so large it cooked, dried and warmed the house for a day. russian pech peasant oven dishes, ancient cooking techniques worth trying

Pottage

The thick one-pot stew of grain, pulses and vegetables that was the daily meal of medieval Europe. what did medieval peasants eat, top 10 medieval foods explained, forgotten peasant stews

Poudre douce

The medieval cook's house spice blend — the mixed spice of its day, kept ready-mixed on the shelf. forgotten medieval feasts flavour building, medieval gingerbread honey spice confection

Puls

The thick emmer porridge that fed the Roman Republic long before bread took over the city. what did romans eat daily, ancient roman recipes to cook at home

Silphium

The Roman world's most prized seasoning — harvested to extinction, and tasted by no living person. lost spice flavors, spice routes lost foods fallen empires tayi

Skyr

The thick Icelandic cultured dairy the Norse carried at sea — technically a cheese, not a yoghurt. viking longship rations cdjx, old world preservation

Small ale

Weak, nourishing everyday ale — drunk by adults and children alike, and not a route to drunkenness. what did people drink middle ages, bread beer dawn agriculture

Stockfish

Cod air-dried to the hardness of wood — the protein that carried Norse ships across the Atlantic. viking longship rations cdjx, old world preservation

Subtlety

Edible sculpture carried in between feast courses — part dessert, part propaganda. forgotten medieval feast dishes, tudor marchpane banquet sugar sculpture

Tahdig

The golden crust at the bottom of the Persian rice pot — the most fought-over part of the meal. persian palace cooking modern echoes 1owf, mughal dastarkhan royal india dishes

Teff

The minuscule Ethiopian grain behind injera — and one of the most nutritious cereals grown anywhere. africa ancient grains fonio teff rediscover, ancient grains bakers guide

Trencher

A thick slice of stale bread used as an edible plate at the medieval table. what did medieval peasants eat, top 10 medieval foods explained

Umu / hāngī

The buried earth oven: fire-heated stones, food wrapped in leaves, and hours of trapped steam. pacific earth oven umu hangi, ancient cooking techniques worth trying

Verjuice

The sharp juice of unripe grapes — the acid that medieval cooking reached for where we reach for lemon. forgotten medieval feasts flavour building, le viandier medieval france cookbook

Yatai

The portable food stalls of Edo — where sushi, tempura and soba were invented as fast street food. edo period forgotten street food, shojin ryori japan temple cuisine