Popcorn before cinema

What is the oldest food in the world? Bread, probably.. or wine.. or cheese perhaps? Oil? These are all very ancient foods and they are prepared from raw materials such as wheat, milk, grapes and olives. But there is another equally old one that we like to eat at the cinema or in front of the TV set: popcorn. The oldest bread dates back some 14,000 years and was found in Jordan. It was a simple mixture of flour and water cooked on a hot stone. Bread as we know it today is more recent; 5,000 years ago. Ancient Egyptians perfected the leavening process to produce soft, fragrant loaves. The history of wine is a little more uncertain but it seems that the first ‘glass’ of wine was drunk 7,000 years ago. Olive oil is believed to be 4,000 years old and cheese 5,000 years old. And popcorn? It's believed to be almost 7,000 years old!

Maize, whose scientific name is Zea mais, was first domesticated by the Maya in present-day Mexico from a wild plant called teosinte. The selection of larger teosinte seeds gradually led to the development of maize as we know it today, characterised by large kernels grouped in a nice cob that can be shelled and then maybe popped to make delicious popcorn. Popcorn in fact means exploded corn. The consumption of maize, or rather of teosinte, the original wild plant, is much older and dates back at least 10,000 years. Recent archaeological evidence suggests that popcorn was first produced in Peru around 6,700 years ago. This evidence includes phytoliths, tiny mineral fragments in plant cells, but above all traces of scorched kernels, a sign that the maize was cooked. It is likely that the discovery of popcorn was accidental. Some hypothesize that some corn kernels may have fallen into a fire and started popping. Now, imagine the surprise of those ancient peoples on seeing such a curious and tasty phenomenon! Popcorn making was not just a pleasant way to munch on a snack before the invention of cinema. It was also a system for storing corn. As it explodes, the kernel loses the water it contains so it can be preserved more easily.