Food History

A glass of homemade eggnog dusted with cinnamon is a mouthwatering prospect to some—and an abomination to others.

The Uniquely American History of Eggnog, Everyone's Favorite—or Least Favorite—Holiday Quaff

This Yuletide mainstay continues to warm cockles and ventricles everywhere

Jonny Fowle, global head of whisky at Sotheby's, tasted a tiny drop of the rare Scotch whisky and described it as "very rich."

Rare Bottle of Scotch Whisky Sells for Record-Breaking $2.7 Million

Made in 1926, the whisky aged in sherry casks for 60 years before being bottled in 1986

Smithsonian's picks for the best books about food of 2023 include Invitation to a Banquet, For the Culture: Black Women and Femmes in Food and More Than Cake.

The Ten Best Books About Food of 2023

Travel to Rome, Alaska, West Africa and beyond with this year’s best cookbooks, memoirs and historic deep dives

Castoreum, an edible, sweet-smelling substance, is found in the castor sacs of beavers.

Does Vanilla Flavoring Actually Come From Beaver Butts?

Despite internet claims, castoreum—a substance found in beaver glands—is rarely used today as a food flavoring

This is the only known first-class Titanic dinner menu of its kind from April 11, 1912.

Titanic Passengers Dined in Style Before Disaster Struck

A water-stained first-class dinner menu dated April 11, 1912 just sold for more than $100,000

Green tea's enduring popularity is reflected in the "teacup without handle" emoji (left). The "hot beverage" emoji (right) takes its cue from another tea tradition: black tea.

What Emoji Tell Us About the History of Tea

From ancient China to 20th-century America, the aromatic beverage has undergone a dramatic evolution

Two bars that Hershey's devised for the U.S. military: Ration D, and the tastier (and more enduring) Tropical Chocolate Bar, which soldiers received as late as 1991.

When Hershey’s Crafted a Special Treat for the Troops

In the run-up to World War II, the chocolate company was tasked with creating a nutritious snack that, by design, wouldn't taste good

Early humans in Europe snacked on seaweed and aquatic plants for thousands of years, though how they prepared and ate them is unclear.

Early Europeans Ate Seaweed for Thousands of Years

Researchers found biomarkers of seaweed and other aquatic plants in samples of dental plaque

This year, the pumpkin spice latte, Starbucks’ most successful seasonal drink, turns 20.

The Pumpkin Spice Latte Turns 20

Since its launch in 2003, the seasonal drink has helped spawn a cultural phenomenon

Baklava consists of fine layers of pastry dough, often filled with nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey.

The Sticky History of Baklava

The sweet dessert is an important part of the culinary identity of so many places that people sometimes dispute claims to its origins

Some 30 million cups of spaghettieis are sold in Germany each year.

How Germany's Spaghetti Ice Cream Came to Be

Italian German ice cream maker Dario Fontanella invented "spaghettieis," a clever dish that has captured the hearts of many

Researchers found evidence of eight different spices on 12 stone tools at the Óc Eo archaeological complex in southern Vietnam.

Archaeologists Uncover Oldest Evidence of 'Curry' Outside of India

Ancient spice processing in Southeast Asia reveals an early trade of ingredients for dishes that Westerners often call “curry”

The curious snack has definitely joined the ranks of food-on-a-stick favorites, including corn dogs, candied apples and deep-fried Snickers.

The Most Surprising Carnival Treat Might Just Be Pickle on a Stick

Pickles are having a moment, even at small-town fairs, where vendors are serving them up like popsicles

L to R: Michael Anthony, David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen and Alex Van Halen pose on a tour bus in 1978.

Why Did Van Halen Demand Concert Venues Remove Brown M&M's From the Menu?

An investigation of the rock band's unusual concert rider suggests the stipulation was a savvy marketing move

The pop-top is a patently American invention.

How Popping Open a Can Became the Sound of Summer

More than 60 years ago, an unfortunate picnic set Ohioan Ermal C. Fraze on a path to inventing the first pop-top tab opener for canned beverages

A woman adds artificial sweetener to a drink. The paranoia over the health dangers of aspartame can be traced back to an early Internet hoax.

The Decades-Long Struggle to Figure Out Whether Aspartame Is Bad for You

As groups within the World Health Organization are reviewing the artificial sweetner’s potential to cause cancer, take a look back at a hoax from the '90s

A recently unearthed fresco at a house in Pompeii shows a flatbread that could have been a precursor to pizza.

Does This Pompeii Painting Depict a 2,000-Year-Old Pizza?

The fresco features a flatbread with a variety of toppings—but no tomato and mozzarella

Losang Samten, a Tibetan American scholar and former Buddhist monk, will create, with the help of festivalgoers, a sand mandala.

The 2023 Smithsonian Folklife Festival Explores the Many Ways Americans Express Their Spirituality

Tibetan Buddhist monks, Yiddish musicians and many more creatives will share their cultural practices with visitors to the National Mall

Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture has acquired Ebony magazine's bright and bold test kitchen, originally built in 1972.

'Ebony' Magazine's Vintage Test Kitchen Finds a Home at the Smithsonian

The 1970s-era kitchen will undergo conservation at the National Museum of African American History and Culture

Spam musubi, a Japanese-American dish created in Hawaii, is made of Spam, rice and seaweed.

How Spam Became a Staple of Asian Cuisine

When American G.I.s fought abroad in wars in the 20th century, they left behind an unlikely legacy: canned meat

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