What did the Ancient Greeks eat?

[Music] ancient greek history has various fascinating aspects we know about the city-states the forming of democracy theater epic poetry and much more but the everyday life of the ancient greeks remains rather unknown in today's episode we will take a look at what the ancient greeks age we will mainly focus on the archaic and classical periods [Music] the climate of ancient wheats varied depending on the region the coastal lands and overall the biggest part of greece had a mediterranean climate with usually long dry summers and wet mildly cold winters in northern greece and on the high mountains of the mainland the climate was usually colder and much wetter with constant rainfall during the spring and fall and frequent snowfalls during the winter greece is around 75 percent mountainous but the soil is usually thin and cannot be cultivated easily the remaining 25 percent is good farmable land the largest rich plains of the mainland were invesalia messinia and biosha the weather in the islands was somewhat different compared to the mainland the islands usually had a drier climate along with very strong winds this is more of a general description though as every island had its own microclimate [Music] regarding water supply ancient greece did not have any large lakes except for the lake's coppers in boise and triconida in atolia as for the rivers there were thousands of small shrimps and rivers coming down from the mountains but most of them would usually dry up or get very thin during the hotter periods of the year there were some large rivers among the largest of which were the aliac monas aquelos pineus and alpheus rivers the cities that were situated alongside large rivers used them both for cultivation and consumption purposes most of greece though depended on the annual rainfall for the crops to grow meaning that drought or too much rain was always a threat [Music] because of the rugged terrain most of the trade was done via the sea the trade was done mainly between neighboring regions or between the city-states of the same greek tribe as the ancient greeks were most of the time distrustful or even hostile to one another as you can imagine the diet of an ancient greek was different depending on the region he lived whether he lived in the rural or urban areas of that region and on his social status nevertheless the ancient greeks shared many common traits regarding their diet the greeks typically had four meals a day the first meal was called a cratisma and was taken in the morning although some greeks liked to have a richer cretismer for the vast majority of them it was a very light meal a kratismer was usually a piece of barley bread dipped in wine sometimes the bread was accompanied with olives or figs the second meal was called arisen and was taken at noon this was also a very light meal the third one called hesperisma was taken in the afternoon this meal was optional as some preferred to not eat anything at all in the afternoon asperisma like the previous meals was also light the last meal of the day was called tipton and was taken at night as the richest meal of the day it usually contained a main dish followed by desserts [Music] the greeks would go to the market or the agora which was usually in the city's center in order to buy food or at least the food that they could not produce on their own there are many descriptions of the agura as it was one of the most lively places of the city farmers fishermen and shepherds from all around the region gather in the agora to sell their products during the afternoon when the agora disbanded these people would roam the streets of the city with their remaining products to find some extra customers before going home when the products of the agora were brought home the women sometimes held by female servants would start cooking the food usually outside of the house in the backyard when the food was ready it was served by the servants if the household did not have any servants the food was served by the women and children of the family usually the food was eaten on clay balls the most common drinks accompanying the meal were water and wine we will talk about what the ancient greeks used to drink in a separate video the greeks mostly ate with their fingers and used spoons and knives when it was necessary there were no table forks back then only large forks used as cooking utensils they usually sat in chairs to enjoy their food although certain meals of the day mostly in rural areas were taken on the ground where the people sat on wall rugs the tables they used were rectangular although after the hellenistic period they mostly used circular ones cooking was at an overwhelming majority the domain of the women but over time some men would take cooking as a profession these cooks were usually invited to prepare meals in the homes of wealthy families they would also write cookbooks which contain recipes or provided information on the diet of a specific region it is from these cooks that we gain most of the information we have today about the ancient greek cuisine [Music] and first of all i bring you the much wistful barley cake which the old genial mother demeter gives a joyful gift to mortals demeter was the greek goddess of agriculture and harvest she was usually depicted holding grain in her hand this is not a surprise as cereals were cultivated in all the valleys and plains of ancient greece the two known types were wheat and barley with the latter being more prevalent their flower was used to make bread which was the most important food for the ancient greeks red accompanied nearly every meal as it was one of the most easily obtainable foods and could quickly satisfy hunger there were hundreds of different bread types although by far the most famous was called maza which is what the common people usually ate maser was a roasted bread made from barley flour sometimes flavoured with goat milk most of the breads that the common people ate were from barley flour although the barley breads were a bit more difficult to make compared to the wheat breads barley was more plentiful because it was easier to cultivate the main ingredients that the peaks added to the dough when making a bread were salt mint and fennel among the many different types of breads two of the most famous were tyrion artists which was wheat bread with cheese and dipperen which was a rosk barley bread leavening was a known procedure in ancient greece the people usually made their own breads in their homes but there were also bakeries in many cities from which the wealthier people bought their breads the most famous bakers were from attica and emperors the olive tree was very important for the ancient greeks olives were essential in their daily diet and would accompany at least one meal a day olive oil was used for various purposes the main purpose was for food the greeks added olive oil in many of their breads are also using it in salads and even in some desserts another important use was for night lighting as they used it to light up their lamps they also used the oil for bathing purposes as well as perfume in addition it was used for medicinal purposes and also in sports the athletes would usually cover their bodies with it before a game or during their training the field of sports would also make use of the olive tree's leaves in many of the games the winners would be crowned with olive wreaths finally they used the olive trees wood to make houses and boats it is no wonder that the olive tree was sacred to the greeks especially to the athenians as it was one of the symbols of the goddess athena [Music] vegetables were highly sought after in ancient greece fresh vegetables were consumed by the inhabitants of rural areas people living in the outskirts of a city and the aristocracy the common people within the city centers could not grow their own vegetables and the fresh ones were rather expensive to buy so they immediately had to make dew with dry ones nevertheless the list of vegetables in ancient greek cuisine is huge some notable ones are onion garlic lupinus lettuce leek purple amaranth cabbage artichoke and green peas the greeks usually ate a salad with mixed vegetables in which they added olive oil and vinegar along with some spices out of all the vegetables their favorite one was garlic they added garlic in breads salads and nearly all the main dishes of their dinner the greeks also cultivated lots of legumes apart from being a nutritious food legumes also had the ability to replenish the exhausted soil providing a solution to a frequent problem in ancient times the different types of legumes they cultivated were lentils chickpeas beans peas and broad beans lentils were eaten in the form of a soup called farque which was the working man's typical dish chickpeas were usually eaten roasted while peas and broth beans were often mashed before being eaten all the legumes would also be eaten as soups a dish that was frequent for common people both in the cities and the rural areas apart from the agricultural vegetables the greeks also gathered and ate wild ones such as asparagus sour thistle and fennel [Music] milk and cheese were produced in nearly all of ancient greece the milk that they consumed was almost exclusively from goats cow and ship milk was rare the people in the countryside loved milk and consumed it in large quantities since the milk would quickly get spoiled the people living in the cities rarely drank milk although they sometimes used it to add flavour in their bread goat milk was also consumed in curdled form which was a common food in ancient greece another dairy product that the greeks consumed even more than milk was cheese it was made either from goat or ship milk and was produced both in soft and hard forms many people would eat cheese for lunch or ariston together with vegetables but cheese was also used as an ingredient for hundreds of different dishes in addition it was part of the diet of the athletes in ancient greece again the fact that cheese is a livestock product made it more present in the rural areas compared to the urban ones butter was known to the greeks but with the exception of some northern greek tribes they considered it barbaric and did not eases eggs were also consumed a lot in ancient greece they usually came from hands and quails the chicken was introduced around the 7th or 6th century bc from the east and quickly spread all around ancient greece the greeks also ate pheasant and goose eggs these were rather rare though and were considered a delicacy the eggs were cooked both soft and hard-boiled and were usually eaten as appetizers or desserts in addition they used eggs as ingredients for many dishes and were often added to the dough of the bread for extra flavor the ancient greeks had many livestock animals the most prominent of which were goats and sheep which were present throughout ancient greece these animals could graze on the mountainsides and hillsides but the soil was not much suitable for agriculture making them the perfect animals to keep as livestock increases mostly mountainous terrain another livestock animal that was present in the countryside was the pig although it was more popular in the cities compared to the other animals that needed large areas of land to graze on pigs would eat anything making it the only livestock animal that could be easily kept in a city regarding the cattle every farmer who could afford an ox would have one as they were very helpful for plowing the fields but breeding cows and bulls for their milk and meat was rare and only practiced by worldly people the greeks also had horses and donkeys the only livestock animals that were not raised for their meat they used horses for racing traveling hunting agricultural work and warfare horses were very expensive to maintain so they were typically only owned by the rich although there were exceptions to this rule for example the region of thessaly which had a vast fertile plain was able to provide large amounts of food both for the inhabitants of the region and their animals the salients were well known around the greek world for their horsemanship donkeys were kept by a lot of people in the rural areas mainly for transportation purposes meat consumption was common in many regions and extremely rare in others in the countryside all meat excluding cattle was consumed regularly especially goats and sheep but in most cities meat was very expensive and was rarely consumed the only meat that was regularly eaten in the urban areas was pork because as we mentioned pigs were the only livestock animal that could be kept in a city house the greeks usually ate pork meat with a soup or in the form of sausages which was a common food both for the rich and the poor aside from livestock the greeks also had poultry which included chickens quails and geese as we mentioned chickens were introduced in greece at the end of the archaic period hence were mainly kept for their eggs and were rarely eaten while roosters would be eaten typically once every few months whales were also raised for their eggs though the main purpose for raising quails was for quail fights which was a big betting sport in ancient greece geese were raised both for their eggs and meat but they were rather rare meat consumption also had a ritualistic nature in ancient greece animal sacrifice was the most common religious ceremony the animals were sacrificed in honor of the gods either in local festivals or on special occasions they usually sacrifice the rarest animals such as bulls and roosters but they also sacrifice more common animals like goats the ritual was always held in public and was practiced upon an altar after the animal was killed the meat was evenly distributed to all the participants and spectators of the ceremony the people would then cook the meat and hold the feast in public during the festivals of panathenia in athens or in the events of the hecatom in olympia 100 oxen were sacrificed but we most certainly know that the vast majority of sacrifices included just one animal as we mentioned meat consumption was very different depending on the region for example in sparta the daily meal of the men was a black broth called melos zamasu which was a soup with pig's blood pork salt and vinegar accompanied with bread figs and olives on the contrary a majority of the athenians only tasted meat on the days of sacrifices during the festivals of the city this is mainly because of overpopulation the rugged clay soil of attica which could not support large numbers of livestock livestock animals were not the only source of meat in ancient greece the people of the countryside as well as the city-states elite loved hunting the greeks hunted either with bows and arrows or with traps sometimes they rode horses to hunt big game but they mostly hunted on foot with the help of hunting dogs they occasionally used bait mainly pigeons to attract the animals they regularly hunted wild boars hair and deer but they would also hunt many different types of birds including thrushes black birds golden orioles partridges starlings and wild ducks meat from hunting game was considered much more tasty than livestock meat which usually made it even more expensive than the regular meat in the market [Music] seafood was consumed in all the coastal regions of ancient greece both the rich and the poor aged fish albeit different types of fish the common people usually consume the small fish that could be captured in large quantities like sardines and anchovies these were often eaten alongside barley bread and olives the wealthier people consumed larger fish which were more difficult to catch like yellowfin tuna ray swordfish studgen sea perch and red mullet the fish were sold either fresh or salted the greeks also ate a fermented fish sauce which was made from sardines and was added to many different dishes apart from fish the greeks consumed other seafood as well like octopus and squid while they also ate many different shellfish including shrimp crabs lobsters sea urchins clams and muzzles in addition they ate fresh water fish like carp pike and catfish while the eels from lake coppaies of bioshia were a delicacy known and loved throughout greece the port of piraeus was a major trade center in ancient greece providing the athenian aguero with products like squids from the region of eretria octopi and shellfish from the island of lesbos and even salted fish from the black sea there were many different fruits in ancient greece the greeks loved them and consumed them daily usually as dessert after their lunch or dinner they were eaten both fresh and dried their favorite fruit was by far the fig ananias a greek poet of the 6th century bc once said if one should lock up within the house much gold a few figs and two or three men you would discover how much better than gold figs are according to the greeks the best figs were from attica archaea and the island of rhodes other well-known fruits were grapes cherries pomegranates plums mulberries myrtleberries apples and lockwoods the grapes were also used to make wine which was linked to the god dionysus this is why they were considered sacred we will talk about wine and its religious role in greek society in the next video apples and pomegranates were also considered to be sacred [Music] nuts were also consumed in vast quantities they often accompanied foods as desserts while they were also used as ingredients in various salads the most known were beech nuts walnuts chestnuts and almonds in times of poverty or famine they would also eat oak acorns the nuts were eaten both raw and roasted depending on the dish and the appetite of the individual the greeks would also make oil from nuts like almonds which they added in salads [Music] the ancient greeks like every other people in the world loved spices they added them in nearly every dish whether the dish included meat fish salad or bread the spices they used included mer caper oregano spearmint cumin cardamom dill and sesame the key ingredient of sweets in ancient greece was honey it is not a surprise that honey was considered a gift from the gods firstly it was the only sweetener as there was no sugar in europe in ancient times secondly it never goes bad and thirdly it's a great antioxidant some greeks believe that honey dropped from the heavens upon the flowers at night and was then carried by the bees to the beehive beekeeping was practiced in all the regions of ancient greece the most famous beekeepers resided in the mount hemitas of attica where they produced thyme honey the greeks used honey in all their sweets and would also mix it with their drinks they usually ate sweets after their dinner there were many famous sweets in ancient greece tagonite where the ancient greek equivalent of pancakes they were made using wheat flour water olive oil sesame seeds and honey amis was a milk pie made with goat milk honey wheat flour and eggs another famous sweet was placus which is like an ancient cheesecake it was made from wheat or spelt flour goat or sheep cheese honey and olive oil [Music] in general the ancient greeks believed in moderation concerning food vladimir was frowned upon although as always there were exceptions to this rule despite the fact that all the food were mentioned and even more was consumed in ancient wheats there were always problems with many of the city-states especially the overpopulated ones as we mentioned the farmers were largely dependent on the weather grain crops would fail once every four years and legume crops would fail even more frequently drought and erosion of the land were a constant threat for many regions while malnutrition was a recurrent problem of the poor people in other populated areas famines were common in these areas and in times of food shortage the people would eat anything to satisfy their hunger including grass and insects as stated by galinis attica is the perfect example it has thin clay soil which may have helped the athenian pottery production but was not good at all for agriculture furthermore there weren't many sources of water in attica and the few that were able to provide a steady supply in the colder months of the year would usually dry up in the summer this is the main reason that the athenians turned to the sea to find a better fortune which they most certainly did by the beginning of the classical period they had already cut so many trees to build their ships and homes that they started importing timber from other regions of greece the trade mainly with the ionian colonies on the aegean islands and the coasts of asia minor and freys was one of the factors that led to the rise of athens the athenians based their diets on what they did have in abundance which was seafood figs and olives sparta on the other hand was in a completely different situation it held the biggest territory of all the city-states in ancient greece the rich plain of messina which they had conquered long ago offered an abundance of food the people that worked in the fields were called helits they were the original inhabitants of messina now subjugated by the spartans the spartan citizens would not work in the fields they were all soldiers controlling a rich plane and producing all they needed meant that they were not dependent on the sea or on trade with other city-states in order for sparta to remain self-sufficient the policy that the city-state established was that the spartan citizens should never eat excessively and should always have large quantities of food in storage for desperate times this policy serves farther well since we have no evidence of famine in the region at least not in times of peace the spartan citizens were given just enough food in order to stay strong and fit for their military activity this is why their usual meal was the black broth or melis zamas as we previously mentioned in the video the spartans could enjoy sweets only on the days of the festivals they also ate in a different manner than most greeks the male citizens did not eat at home they would eat together in public while sitting on benches this practice was called sicitio and was also accustomed in a few other doric city-states the helits were given as much food as needed to work but not enough to become as strong as the spartans this was because of the fear of halite uprisings which did happen frequently as the hellets were much more numerous than the spartans the policy of restricted food distribution is the reason the spartan diet had a bad reputation throughout greece although most of the reputation gained was due to athenian exaggeration to a rich citizen of a wealthy city though the diet was indeed seen as unappealing a man from siberis a city in southern italy was once served melissa in sparta after eating the broth he said it was no great thing for the spartans to seek death in the wars in order to escape so many hardships and such a wretched life as theirs siberis was well known throughout ancient greece in the archaic period as the wealthiest city a reputation well earned as many of the civil rights lived highly luxurious lives the city of siberis though was destroyed in 540 bc the regions that remained rich throughout ancient greek history were sicily and thessaly because of the vast fertile lands which provided an abundance of food i would like to end this video with a quote from antiphonics for why should any man wealth desire and seek to pile his treasures higher if it were not to aid his friends in their need and to gain for himself loves and gratitude's meat for all can drink and all can eat and it is not only the richest meat or the oldest wine in the well-chased bowl which can banish hunger and thirst from the soul thank you for watching [Music]

Channel: Historical Adventure

Views: 287,505

Keywords: ancient greek food, what did the ancient greeks eat, the food of ancient greeks, ancient greek diet, greek food, ancient greek cuisine, greek cuisine, olives, fruits, cuisine, ancient, greek, ancient greek, greece, figs, tasting history, everyday life, ancient greek everyday life, ancient food, ancient cuisine

Id: bgq3974Y_Ug

Length: 25min 50sec (1550 seconds)

Published: Fri Nov 12 2021