Ancient Greek cooking is the source of Western food civilization.

The reason is that the main foods and cooking methods of ancient Greece, especially the long patterns and varieties, directly affected the diet and cooking of many Western countries.

Regarding the cooking situation in ancient Greece, before the 8th century BC, it was mainly seen in Homer's epic poems "Iliad" and "Odyssey".

There are also some unearthed cultural relics that can provide some clues.

Here, based on these materials and cultural relics, we will roughly outline the outline of ancient Greek food and cooking from the aspects of dietary life, main food raw materials, cooking techniques, meals and banquets, etc.

Greek civilization was built on wine and olive oil.

Greece presses olives to produce olive oil, which is not only used by its own people, but also exported to other countries.

Greece has also introduced many new fruits, vegetables and seasonings from abroad, further enriching its food raw materials.

Before the 5th century BC, the Greeks had cultivated a large number of fruits and vegetables of different types and qualities. They differed in quality, maturity time, soil and moisture requirements, etc., and they could satisfy the people of that time to a certain extent.

dietary needs.

Among them, grapes and olives have the largest production and the best quality.

The Greeks made a lot of wine from grapes.

With the rich ingredients, Greek food culture has become the most enduring food culture with the most civilized characteristics that continues to this day.

In ancient Greece, people usually had two meals a day. The first meal was eaten near noon, called ariston, which was relatively simple and light; the second meal was eaten near dusk, which was richer, thicker, and often

Considered a feast deipnon.

Among the leisure classes, the second meal might turn into a feast and social gathering that lasted the entire evening.

The dining area is often a public hall.

In Greek homes, a main room is chosen as the dining place, with tables, chairs or stools placed in it for people to use.

In Athens and some other cities, there are many middle- and upper-class houses, and there is also a room specifically for men to eat and entertain, called an andron.

There are sofas and small tables in this room, and each sofa can accommodate one or two people.

When dining, a clean small table should be placed in front of every sofa or in front of everyone. On the table are freshly cooked dishes, bread and wine. People often lean on the sofa and put the dishes directly on the bread.

Eat with your hands. If it is a soup, serve it in a small bowl. When the dessert is served, the table must be changed.

The following entertainment activities can be organized and arranged by the host or participants, including singing, guessing, juggling and other competitive games.

In all cases, it was the free man who ate separately from the rest of the family, no matter what time, where, or what dish.

Slaves and children in the household, both male and female, could only eat with the housewife.

In ancient Greece, especially Athens, male professional chefs had a high social status.

Their work is often associated with religious rituals.

They rented out their own services or those of their own slaves, and to some extent assisted the cooks who were responsible for the daily meals of the household.

In addition, the Greeks attached great importance to food and often regarded food as a medium of favor and dependence.

Ancient Greek cooking technology mainly focused on cooking methods and seasoning methods.

The main cooking methods include roasting, frying, deep-frying and boiling, etc., and the roasting method is usually done outdoors.

Although the baking method they use is primitive, they operate it methodically and with great care.

In addition to the extensive use of roasting, the Greeks also used other cooking methods.

People at that time liked to use various spices for seasoning.

Including raisins, olives, capers, onions, garlic, cumin, sesame seeds, almonds, as well as olive oil, vinegar, grape juice, eggs, salt and pickled fish. Also includes thyme, oregano, bay leaf, rue, rue

, sage, parsley, fig leaves and other herbs.

The method of using these herbs for seasoning was widely used in cooking in Western countries and continues to this day.

In addition, Athens in ancient Greece also liked to use a condiment from afar—burial worms.

People often dry the body fluids of burial insects and add them to dishes as a seasoning, giving the dishes a very unique flavor.

Dinners and banquets In ancient Greece, dinners and banquets usually had roughly the same format and composition, and the types of dishes were also similar.

It starts with a basket of toasted bread, followed by the first course, which consists of various appetizers and condiments and is served with the bread.

The second course consists of seafood and fruits and vegetables, still accompanied by bread.

This dish can include raw bats and sea urchins; fried shrimps and squid fillets; grilled or boiled gill fillets, eel fillets, tuna fillets, and mulberry sausage; it can also be sweet flour cakes, sweet and salty fillings

Fish and dishes with cheese, etc.

Asparagus, cauliflower, cabbage and other vegetables as well as various olives and garlic are not only used as decorations but also as indispensable components of the dishes.

The third main course consists of fish, poultry or other meat, and is accompanied by wine.

The main dishes that most often appear on the menu include fish such as finfish, finfish, tuna, marine jellyfish, gillfish, butterflyfish, and red and gray mullet, as well as chicken, duck, goose, beef, and pork.

, mutton, hare meat, etc.

These poultry must be slaughtered and cooked by specialized butchers as required, and appropriate religious rituals are required.