Whether it is a bite of simple food or a gourmet meal, it can be a life-altering experience. However, have you ever wondered who discovered the food that we take so much for granted?
From the cereal we eat to the cakes we indulge in, to the food that finds its way to a part of a seven-course gourmet meal, every food has a story to tell. Let’s discover some of the backstories of the foods here. We bet it is going to be a delicious and fascinating read.
Breakfast Cereal
Modern families cannot do away without their breakfast, cereals. While there is nothing as enticing to have those crunchy sugary wholesome goodness with cold and creamy milk, it just makes us wonder, who made this bowl of delicious breakfast option?
The first manufactured cereal was Granula, and it was an inversion by Dr. James C. Jackson of Dansville, New York state, in 1863, and at that time, soaking it overnight to have it in the morning.
The too-hard-to-crunch-in-your-mouth food turned out to be crunchy and more palatable in the hands of John Kellogg, who launched the Corn Flakes in 1895. However, this breakfast staple went through innumerable transformations and became refined sugary Krispies and what not. Till today there are no mornings without dunking your favorite cereal in cold or hot milk! Ah, bliss!
French Fries
This ubiquitous food deserves a crown of its own. It deserves various crowns, the kid’s favorite, the adult’s favorite, basically everyone’s favorite food. Your humble potatoes fried to crunchy perfection hails from Peru and Chile. However, we still don’t know who thought of discovering the french fries first, whether it was the Belgians in the 17th century to Thomas Jefferson’s French chef who made the president the perfect meal of chipped potatoes, creating the term French fries.
Fries are the cornerstone of most meals, whether with burgers, hotdogs, or fries. You cannot do one without the other. Legend has it, in 1853, Cornelius Vanderbilt did not like his chips too much, saying it was too thick, and then he had to make another batch till they were as thin and hard as possible and became the famous ‘Saratoga Chip. ‘
Meatloaf
This popular food has been a favorite of most Americans. Who would think that a mix of pork and cornmeal can turn out to be so delicious? Well, everybody’s favorite meatloaf dates back to the 1800s. It reached its popularity in the 1940s when the neat, sliced-in loaves replaced the whole-joint roast. We are left wondering what life could be without this comfort food? It is delicious, bathed in gravy served with mashed potato.
Baked Beans
There is simply no other tinned food as popular as baked beans. This humble dish is very much like the food cooked by Native Peoples in northeast America. The Boston baked beans contain molasses and pork fat. And it found its way in the tins in the 1860s. The amalgamation of navy beans, maple syrup, venison meat, and, sometimes, bear fat is cooked and simmered in earthenware pots and is close to the taste of the Boston baked beans.
A Pennsylvania-based company called the HJ Heinz Company (founded by Henry Heinz) began producing this en masse in the late 19th century. The world got to taste the amazing concoction. Well, we can’t thank them enough for what could be our breakfast without baked beans with baked potatoes and toast, or as a BBQ side dish?
Chicken Tikka Masala
Chicken tikka masala is one of the world’s most popular dishes. The discovery took place in a curry house in Glasgow. As per Ali Ahmed Aslam, the founder of Shish Mahal, a customer complained that the chicken dish was ‘too dry’ way back in 1970. Aslam made it more delicious and creamy by adding a can of tomato soup, some yogurt, and many spices.
The dish soon found its way to the top most popular dishes in the restaurant. However, there are many sides to the story. While some say its invention was during the British Raj, others say it was a variation of the Punjabi recipe. It remained UK’s most popular dish and became a national dish in 2012.
Well, we should certainly be grateful for the food we have on our plates. We owe it to the people who make the food, nourishing, tasty and oh-so-delicious!
