Food and Think

Sipping From a Skull

Archaeologists may have found the earliest examples of human skull cups

March 21, 2012

A Brief History of Bitters

The author of a new book on bitters explains how they went from medicine to cocktail ingredient

March 20, 2012

Pfizer’s Recipe for Pig Testicle Tacos

Corporate cookbooks occupy a unique place in the kitchen, and they exhibit corporate America’s attempt to establish societal norms

March 16, 2012

What Shredded Wheat Did for the Navy

The inventor of one of the first ready-to-eat breakfast cereals was also an accidental historian

March 14, 2012

Food and Video Games

Video games may be the art medium of the 21st century, but they’re also an advertising medium. Here are five notable games that promoted foods

March 13, 2012

Was Chop Suey the Greatest Culinary Joke Ever Played?

Have you heard the one about the crowd of hungry miners looking for a meal in Chinatown?

March 12, 2012

Underwood’s Deviled Ham: The Oldest Trademark Still in Use

The 1870 trademark was for “Deviled Entremets”—”Intended for Sandwiches, Luncheons, and Traveler’s Repasts”

March 9, 2012

Black Lobster and the Birth of Canning

The canning innovation left another lasting impression: Foods are safe only when sterilized

March 8, 2012

Why We Have Sliced Bread

“Here is a refinement that will receive a hearty and permanent welcome,” a reporter wrote of the best thing to hit grocery store shelves

March 7, 2012

That’s Disgusting

While disgust originally protected us from potential poisons, it eventually gave rise to culturally defining flavors and odors, all tied to local microbes

March 5, 2012

How a Ship Full of Fish Helped Recreate an Ancient Fish Sauce

A 2,000-year-old shipwreck held ceramic vessels full of fish sauce, as well as a giant tank for transporting live fish

March 1, 2012

Five Ways to Eat Lentils

Tired of soup? Use them in cookies, pies or puddings—no, really

February 29, 2012

Fish Sauce, Ketchup and the Rewilding of Our Food

Fermented fish sauce has been a culinary staple since at least the 7th century B.C. What makes this seemingly disgusting condiment so popular?

February 28, 2012

Peeling Open the 1947 Chiquita Banana Cookbook

What do ham banana rolls with cheese sauce and salmon salad tropical have to say about politics?

February 24, 2012

Fruits and Vegetables Like You’ve Never Seen Them Before

Microscopy artist Robert Rock Belliveau says, “I couldn’t believe the things I found on the things we eat every day”

February 22, 2012

The Best and Worst of Canarian Food

There are two delicacies unique to the Canary Islands that every visitor should try at least once—and in the case of one of them, once is quite enough

February 16, 2012

Nothing Out of the Ordinary: Squirrel Stewed, 1878

A collection of old community cookbooks reflects a changing ecology and a cultural shift: the decline of hunting, chitlins and pig’s feet

February 15, 2012

Everything You Wanted to Know About Food and Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask)

What is the term for a “euphoric sensation upon eating amazingly delicious food”

February 14, 2012

Brotherhood Spirit in Flesh Soup, or a Recipe Calling For Love

The counterculture has long been characterized by a single word: “love.” For some hippie communards, love was also a recipe ingredient

February 13, 2012

Charles McIlvaine, Pioneer of American Mycophagy

“I take no man’s word for the qualities of a toadstool,” said the man who took it upon himself to sample more than 600 species

February 8, 2012