Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Food

This could be your future.

You Can Now Apply to Be a Cadbury Chocolate Taster

A “passion for confectionary” is required

The researchers found that an electromagnetic "hotspot" is responsible for producing the burst of plasma

Why Do Grapes Send Sparks Flying in the Microwave?

The effect can be replicated with just about any grape-sized, water-based sphere, from large blackberries to gooseberries, quail eggs and hydrogel beads

Ovie Smarterware alerts you when your food has hit half of its shelf life.

Seven Technologies That Could Help Fight Food Waste

From food-sharing apps to “smart” storage systems, these innovations might reduce the amount of food you toss

There are now zero waste supermarkets from Brooklyn to Sicily to Malaysia to South Africa.

The Rise of ‘Zero-Waste’ Grocery Stores

A growing number of supermarkets sell food without packaging in an effort to reduce the toll of plastic on the environment

The Patents Behind Your Box of Valentine’s Day Chocolates

Before you sample a truffle or a coconut cream, consider all of the innovation that has been poured into the sweets and their lovely presentation

Vomiting and higher levels of perceived drunkenness were linked with more severe hangovers

Whether You Drink Beer Before Wine or Vice Versa, You’ll Probably Still Get a Hangover

90 volunteers downed copious amounts of alcohol in the name of science

Paella, a national favorite in Spain, is a hearty dish prominently featuring two of Linford's Seven Wonders—rice and tomato. It may be seasoned with salt and chili flakes as well.

The Mouthwatering History of Seven Fundamental Foodstuffs

A new Smithsonian book whisks readers on a culinary odyssey, tracing the history of salt, pork, honey, chili, tomato, rice and chocolate

An image of the true U.S. pizza king Filippo Milone in the May 9, 1903 issue of the Italian-language newspaper Il Telegrafo.

Cool Finds

The Father of American Pizza Is Not Who We Thought He Was

New research suggests pizza came to the U.S. earlier than 1905, spread by pizza evangelist Filippo Milone

The Necco candy factory used to produce piles of Sweethearts.

The Pharmacist Who Launched America’s Modern Candy Industry

Oliver Chase invented a lozenge-cutting machine that led to Necco wafers, Sweethearts and the mechanization of candy making

Pandamonium

Pandas Weren’t Always Picky Eaters

A new study suggests the all-bamboo diet was adopted in the recent past, not millions of years ago

Charred residue containing evidence of beer making.

Cool Finds

Oldest Evidence of British Beer Found in Highway Dig

Charred residues show cracked grain and starch molecules likely used as part of a beer brewing session in 400 B.C.

The Patents Behind Pasta Shapes

When you sit down to a bowl, be it gnocchi or Kraft macaroni, consider the design work and innovation that have gone into it

Trending Today

Syndemic: The Little-Known Buzzword That Describes Our Troubled Times

A new report argues that the epidemics of obesity, undernutrition and climate change should be treated as one global mega-problem

"Miss U Already"

Sweethearts Candies Won’t Be Available This Valentine’s Day

Production of the iconic treat ground to a halt after the company that makes them went out of business

Cool Finds

3,000-Year-Old Quinoa Found in Ontario

The batch of charred grain is the farthest north a now-extinct version of the crop has been found

Two new studies document the myriad of threats facing Earth's 124 wild coffee species

More Than Half of All Coffee Species Are at Risk of Extinction

The popular Arabica bean, used in such rich blends as Java, is amongst the species threatened by climate change, deforestation

Almost all American cheeses are based on European cheeses that are familiar to both producers and consumers. Not this one.

The Quest for a Totally American Cheese

Move over, Camembert! Three creameries in the U.S. are developing a recipe for a unique cheese they are calling Cornerstone

Trending Today

Why the Nation of Georgia Wants to Make Wine on Mars

Researchers there are looking for grape varieties that can grow in Martian soil and survive high radiation and carbon monoxide

Romaine lettuce was recently affected by an E. coli outbreak

The Government Shutdown Is Affecting FDA Food Inspections—but Don’t Panic

FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb says the agency will resume scheduling inspections of ‘high risk’ foods next week

Page 34 of 86