Ancient+Greek+Food

media type="youtube" key="q79M6jLSV58" height="377" width="664" align="center"


 * RECIPES: **

** 1. Meat and Macaroni Pie **
•500 gr thick macaroni •1 kg minced meat •3 eggs •180 gr grated kefalo or Parmesan cheese •100 gr oil 1 medium sized onion •500 gr ripe tomatoes •1 portion béchamel sauce salt pepper

** 2. Yoghurt **
•1/2 kilo strained yoghurt • 1 cucumber •4 garlic cloves •salt •oil •vinegar

== Food, for the Greeks, had all sorts of religious meanings. The Greeks never ate meat unless it had been sacrificed to a god, or had been hunted in the wild. They believed that it was wrong to kill and eat a domesticated animal without sacrificing it to the gods. Even with vegetables, many Greeks believed that some foods were cleaner or dirtier, or that certain gods liked certain foods better than others. Also, because of their feelings about sacrificing meat, they may have eaten meat less than other people did. The foods of ancient Greece were similar to foods we eat today, but their cooking ways were very different. (What do Ancient Greek Eat?) ==

The Greeks’ food in their diet was seafood. They mainly ate anchovies, boarfish, crayfish, cuttlefish, eels, gray, red mullet, grouper, octopus, prawns, rays, sardines, sea bass, sprats, squid, tuna, wrasse. Because they lived so close to waters, like the Mediterranean Sea, finding these types of foods wasn’t so hard to find. As stated before, the main food of protein was seafood. Goats and sheep were common and had milk for cheese. Meat was not on a poor mans’ table every day, but still pretty common and then from chicken and pig. As always, the rich could allow themselves and ate other types of meat. Hunting could give access to hares and wild fowl.( What did Ancient Greeks Eat?)

=== The most affective food they had was grains. They eat it every day with every meal. Some foods they had were barley, wheat, coriander, mint, pepper, oregano, salt, saffron, thyme.This help The Greek diet consisted of foods that were easily raised in the rocky land of Greece’s. Breakfast was eaten just after sunrise and they had bread dipped in wine. Lunch was bread dipped in wine, with some olives, figs, cheese or dried fish. Dinner was the main meal of each day. It was eaten near sunset. It included vegetables, fruit, fish, and maybe had honey cakes. Sugar was unknown to ancient Greeks, so natural honey was used as a sweetener. ( Eyewitness) ===

== Fish was the main part of protein in the Greek diet. Beef was very expensive, so it was not really eaten. Beef and pork were only available to poor people during religious festivals. It was during the festivals that cows or pigs were sacrificed to the gods, and the meat was cooked and handed out to the public. Wine was the main drink in ancient Greece. It was poured down, and to drink it straight was uncivilized. Milk was not drunk, because again, it was known to be uncivilized. Milk was used for cheese production. Water was another possible choice as a drink. ( Food and Feasts of Ancient Greece) ==

== The Greeks did not have any eating tools, so they ate with their hands. Bread was often used to scoop out thick soups. Bread was also used as a napkin to clean hands. After being used as a napkin, the bread was then thrown on the floor for the dogs or slaves to clean up at a later time. Men often gathered for dinner parties called symposiums. Having guests in the house was a “male-only” affair. Women of the house were not permitted to attend. After giving a wine offering to the gods, the men drank and talked about politics or morals. Often young girls and boys would be employed to entertain guests with music and dance.( Food and Feasts of Ancient Greece) == == For some reason vegetables and fruits taste better in Greece than they do elsewhere. There are many theories of course. Some say it is the absence of pesticides. Greece is made up of mountains and valleys. The farms are in the valleys. The water rains on the mountains and washes minerals into the valleys. The more rich a fruit or vegetable is in minerals, the better it will taste. Since many fruits and vegetables are now grown on large farms, without knowing what you are eating and where it comes from you have no way of knowing why it is good, or in some cases is not. Just because you may eat the best tomato or melon in your life during your stay in Greece does not mean that you will eat delicious vegetables rich in minerals at every meal at every restaurant. With confidence that those restaurants where the Greeks eat, great care is taken in choosing the fruits and vegetables that are served that day. == ==How Greeks eat is a very different pattern to other countries. The western world have had it drummed into us to always have breakfast, normally packaged cereals or toast with jam, or the English breakfast of fried eggs, sausages and bacon! For the midday meal, a packed lunch of sandwiches or a roll. Then our biggest meal of the day will be in the evening, followed by falling into bed within a few hours afterwards. There are many things to learn about Greek food and Greek cuisine that sets it apart from other countries. The history of Greece has had a great impact on traditional Greek meals, from rich affluent times to poor == ==frugal times when beans and legumes were relied on for substance. Certain foods, such as olives, garlic, lemons and herbs have become the main ingredients or seasonings to a lot of foods which give Greek food its unique flavor. Religion plays a large role in the lives of the people of Greece, with most of them being Christian orthodox and most celebrations, festivals, foods and traditions originate from religious holidays. ==

//1. Food and Feasts of Ancient Greece//. New Discovery Books, 1995. 1-32. Print.

("Food and Feasts of Ancient Greece" 1-32)

//2. Eyewitness Ancient Greece, First. Dolring Kidersley: DK Publishing, 2007. 72.// (Eyewitness Ancient Greece 72)

3. "What Did Ancient Greeks Eat?." . N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Mar 2012. .