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“Traditional foods” are not very old. The French baguette: adopted nationwide only after WW2 Greek moussaka: created early 20th c. to Frenchify Greek food Tequila? The Mexican film industry made it the national drink in the 1930s (All from an excellent @rachellaudan article) https://t.co/SLfeKefU6R
And “ethnic” dishes were invented for aristocrats: “This is as true of the lasagna of northern Italy as it is of the chicken korma of Mughal Delhi, the moo shu pork of imperial China, and the pilafs, stuffed vegetables & baklava of the great Ottoman palace in Istanbul”
“Natural” food? “For our ancestors, natural was something quite nasty”—it tasted bad and was usually indigestible “Our forebears bred, ground, soaked, leached, curdled, fermented, and cooked naturally occurring plants and animals until they were literally beaten into submission”
“Eating fresh, natural food was regarded with suspicion verging on horror; only the uncivilized, the poor & the starving resorted to it… Happiness was not a verdant Garden of Eden abounding in fresh fruits, but a securely locked storehouse jammed with preserved, processed foods”
I can't quote enough from this article, just read it: “In Praise of Fast Food” https://t.co/CqUdWrBma8
Bonus: chicken tikka masala is reported to have been invented in Glasgow (h/t @bernard_ben) https://t.co/Dn59Dihyml
Apparently there is a longer version of the article here! https://t.co/hWc6904oyp https://t.co/aD3xLwVWXl
Also, since everyone has mentioned it, ciabatta bread was invented in the 1980s, “as a direct response to [Italy]’s increasing reliance on French baguettes” https://t.co/Gc1hSjycHA
@jasoncrawford @rachellaudan I don't know if you've read this classic Hobwbawm book on the subject, but it's a great read. https://t.co/KYxOX7ftOM