A history of food / Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat ; translated by Anthea Bell.

ISBN:

9781444305142

Title:

Author:

Toussaint-Samat, Maguelonne, 1926-

Personal Author:

Toussaint-Samat, Maguelonne, 1926-

Uniform Title:

Histoire naturelle & morale de la nourriture. English

Edition:

New expanded ed.

Publication Information:

Chichester, West Sussex, U.K. ; Malden, MA : Wiley-Blackwell, 2009.

Physical Description:

1 online resource.

Contents:

Collecting gathering hunting -- Collection honey -- The history of gathering -- Hunting -- Stock-breeding arable farming: meat, milk, cereals -- The history of meat -- The history of dairy produce -- The history of cereals -- The three sacramental foods: oil, bread, wine -- The history of oil -- The history of bread and cakes -- The history of wine -- The economy of the markets -- The history of fish -- The history of poultry -- Luxury foods -- Treasures from the sea -- The treasure of the forests -- The era of the merchants -- An essential food -- Spice at any price -- New needs: sugar, chocolate, coffee, tea -- The lure of sugar -- Confectionery and preserves -- Chocolate and divinity -- Coffee and politics -- Tea and philosophy -- Orchards and kitchen gardens -- The tradition of fruits -- The evolution of vegetables -- The potato revolution -- Science and conscience in the diet -- Preserving by heat -- Preserving by cold -- The reassurance of dietetics -- A reassuring future.

Subject Term:

Nutrition -- Social aspects -- History.

Food -- History.

Food supply -- History.

Format:

Electronic Resources

Electronic Access:

Click here to view

Publication Date:

2009

Publication Information:

Chichester, West Sussex, U.K. ; Malden, MA : Wiley-Blackwell, 2009.

Available:*

Shelf Number	Material Type	Copy	Shelf Location	Status
641.3009 TOU	1:E-BOOK	1	1:ONLINE	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

A HISTORY OF FOOD

This classic work is an exploration and celebration of man's relationship with food from earliest times to the present day. Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat tells the story of cuisine and the social history of food, taking in fascinating, little-known byways along the journey. For instance, we learn that Aztecs enjoyed chocolate as a drink with chilli and honey; we discover the Iroquois origins of popcorn; we hear about the potential culinary and farming uses of lupin seeds. Toussaint-Samat looks at the transition from a vegetable-based to an increasingly meat-based diet, as well as at the relationship between people and what they eat, between particular foods and social behavior, and between dietary habits and methods of cooking.

This new expanded edition includes a foreword by food writer, Betty Fussell, author of The Story of Corn and Raising Steaks , a new final chapter covering recent developments in food production and consumption around the world, and an updated bibliography. Beautifully illustrated with nearly 70 illustrations and new color plates, A History of Food will continue to be read and enjoyed by a fresh generation of readers.

Author Notes

Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat

The author is an historian, journalist, and writer. She has written for a variety of periodicals in France and published over seventeen books on cuisine, history, and French regional culture. Her books on the Loire and Périgord received commendations from the Académie Française and the Académie du Périgord. Her principal historical interest is in the medieval and renaissance culture of Europe, in particular the domestic economy, food, and clothing. She pursues her research in association with the École des Hautes Études.

Reviews (2)

Choice Review

Pioneering food historian Toussaint-Samat has expanded her 1987 French classic (English translation, 1992) to include updates on scientific and technological discoveries. She divides her account into nine major sections, which range from discussions of food gathering and production techniques to histories of individual types of food to the role played by science in nutrition and food preservation. The reader will be amazed and fascinated by the dizzying array of details about various foods in this 700-page tome. What at times might seem a surfeit of detail could overwhelm the reader, except that at judicious moments in the narrative, Toussaint-Samat manages to interject humorous observations that are so dry they are more reminiscent of a Kingsley Amis novel than of the magnum opus of a French intellectual. What really distinguishes this history, though, is the author's characteristically French penchant for the theoretical, the abstract, and the symbolic, as she broadens her account to examine the importance of food in myth and legend. Further, she explores the role played by food--hunger in particular--as a generative force in shaping the direction of human history. Food studies scholars in English-speaking countries will appreciate the bibliography of recent English-language works on the topic. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. D. M. Gilbert Maine Maritime Academy

Library Journal Review

From hunters and gatherers and the onset of agriculture to the rise of commercial foodways, historian Toussaint-Samat presents not just the historical background but the cultural, religious, and social impact of food. Extensively researched, with quotations from a wide array of historical sources, the volume does tend to focus slightly more on Europe than on other parts of the world, although there is a visible effort to provide balanced coverage. While some areas receive more intense scrutiny-wine, for example, rates over 30 pages-other topics are skimmed over: an entire section of the book covering sugar, chocolate, tea, coffee, and confectionaries, all significant introductions, fills only 50 pages. While not precisely a book to be read from cover to cover, this will be a useful source for students or researchers as a strong first reference point and for anyone with a dedicated interest in food history. Changes include a new preface, epilog, updated bibliography, and chapter addressing recent issues relating to food. Recommended for larger public and academic libraries, although those whose collections include the first edition should not consider it an essential update.-Courtney Greene, DePaul Univ. Lib., Chicago (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Foreword to new edition by Betty Fussell

Preface

Acknowledgments

List of Illustrations

Introduction

Part I Collecting, Gathering, Hunting

From fire to the pot

1 Collecting honey

Honey in the Golden Age

A taste of honey

Honey in legend

2 The history of gathering

The ancient pulses

The symbolism of beans

The etymologyentomology) of haricot beans

The holy war of cassoulet

Soya: the most widely eaten plant in the world

Soya: nutritional facts and figures

Mushrooms and fungi

Roots

Table of vegetable nutrition

3 Hunting

The great days and the decline of game

Nutritional facts and figures about game

Part II Stock-breeding, Arable Farming: Meat, Milk, Cereals

The evidence of occupied sites

4 The history of meat

The birth of stock-breeding and society

Areas of origin of the first domestic animals

Meat-eating: likes and dislikes

The horse, the spirit of corn

Fax oxen and prosperous butchers

5 The history of dairy produce

Cheese and curds

Yoghurt: fermented milk

Butter: the cream of the milk

The symbolism of butter

6 The history of cereals

Cereals as civilizers

The symbolism of wheat

The long march of cereals

Imperialist cereals

The myth of Demeter

Everyday cereals

Harvest festivals

Strategic cereals

Rice in the east

The symbolism of rice

Maize in the west

Why maize is called 'I have no more gumbo'

Why corn cobs are thin and small

Zuni legend of maize flour

From porridge to beer

The technique of brewing beer

The history of pasta

The history of grain spirits

Part III The Three Sacramental Foods: Oil, Bread, Wine

The fundamental trinity

7 The history of oil

Olive oil

The dietary history of olive oil

Olive oil in legend and symbolism

Making olive oil

Other oils

Margarine

8 The history of bread and cakes

The bread on the board

The symbolism of bread and cakes

Four stages in the development of bread-making

The taste of bread

The technique of bread-making

Our daily bread

Special cakes for Sundays

9 The history of wine

From the vine to wine

Dessert grapes

The technique of wine-making

The symbolism of wine

The legend of Dionysus

The proper use of wine

Cooking with wine

Wine and God

A wine of revolution

Part IV The Economy of the Markets

The centre of the city

10 The history of fish

The fish of the ancient world

A Who's Who of sea fish

The Salmonidae, a family of aristocrats

Fishing in legend

Extravagance and economy in eating fish

The symbolism of fish

Uses for less profitable fish

The providential nature of salt fish

Drying, salting and smoking fish; an age-old procedure

Aquaculture and pisciculture: fish farming

Blue Europe, or the common fish market

From fishing to our plates

11 The history of poultry

Facts about poultry

Choosing poultry

The symbolism of poultry

Eggs: their uses and customs

Part V Luxury Foods

The revels of the Gauls

12 Treasures from the sea

The history of garum

The history of caviare

A Who's Who of caviare

How to keep caviare happy

The history of shellfish and crustaceans

Facts about crustaceans

The history of shellfish farming

The biology of the oyster

The biology of the mussel

13 The treasure of the forests

The history of pork and charcuterie

About ham

Sausages

The symbolism of the pig

The history of foie gras

Facts about foie gras

The symbolism of liver

The history of truffles

Part VI The Era of the Merchants

Making a good profit

14 An essential food

The history of salt

The symbolism of salt

The technique of winning salts

15 Spice at any price

About spices

The secret of spices

Cinnamon

Pepper

Ginger

Turmeric and cardamom

Cloves

The great trading companies

Nutmeg and mace

Chillies and sweet peppers

Aromatics and the imagination

Saffron

Vanilla

Everday condiments and herbs

Herbs

The proper use of spices, aromatics and condiments

The grocer's trade

Part VII New Needs: Sugar, Chocolate, Coffee, Tea

Gluttony and greed for gain

16 The lure of sugar

Rum, a sugar spirit

The legend of sugar

17 Confectionary and preserves

18 Chocolate and divinity

Definitions of chocolate

19 Coffee and politics

Coffee from the islands

Coffee in legend

20 Tea and philosophy

Tea in legend

The symbolism of tea

Part VIII Orchards and Kitchen Gardens

Instructions for the garden

21 The tradition of fruits

The symbolism of the apple

Grafting

Dessert apples

Cider and Calvados

Pears

Plums

Peaches

The peach in legend

Apricots

The dietetics of apricots

Cherries

The diatetics of cherries

Strawberries

Melons

Oranges

Growing and selling oranges

A Who's Who of oranges

Grapefruit

Figs

The symbolism of figs and the fig tree

Dates

Pineapples

Bananas

Avocados

22 The evolution of vegetables

Cabbages

Cauliflowers

Salad

Chicory and endive

Watercress

Asparagus

Growing asparagus

Artichokes

Tomatoes

23 The potato revolution

Sweet chestnuts

Potatoes

Souffle potatoes

Part IX Science and Conscience in the Diet

The hows and whys of quality

24 Preserving by heat

Canned sardines

The technique of canning

Food preservation

Pasteurized milk

25 Preserving by cold

Quick-freezing

26 The assurance of dietetics

Vitamins

27 A reassuring future

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Available:*

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (2)

Choice Review

Library Journal Review

Table of Contents