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1-Page Summary of Consider the Fork

Overview

All people eat, but the way they do it varies across cultures and over time. For example, we take our forks, knives, pots and pans for granted because they’re so common to us. But would we be able to live without them? Also, food culture has changed a lot over time—we don’t have refrigerators like our ancestors did. However, are all these things really necessary?

As a matter of fact, the evolutionary impacts of cooking and how it has helped humanity for millions of years can be quite surprising. At its core, Consider the Fork examines the notion that our cooking not only changes what we eat but also who we are and will become in the future.

In this article, you will learn how manioc was discovered and became a staple food; the role of the Lord’s prayer in cooking eggs; and why kitchen staff used to walk around naked.

Big Idea #1: The invention of pots and pans for cooking was one of the greatest breakthroughs in human history.

When we think of cooking, we mostly think of tasty food or recipes rather than the history and origin of cooking. It’s quite interesting that humans even came up with this idea in the first place.

Archaeologists estimate that the oldest pots ever found date back as far as 10,000 BC. Pots were first made from shells and turtles, but eventually became less rudimentary. The majority of the earliest pots were made from clay, which had the disadvantages of tainting food with a strange flavor and being fragile.

Around 3,000 years ago, the people of Egypt and China began using metal pots to cook food. They were better than ceramic ones because they didn’t crack in fire or affect the taste of the contents. Metal pots also became easier to clean and last longer.

The invention of the pot was important, but it also saved lives. It allowed people to eat food that didn’t require chewing. Without pots, people would have starved because they couldn’t chew their food. The pot helped many escape death by providing them with nutritious soups and porridge.

Pots and pans allowed us to cook food, which made certain plants edible that otherwise would be toxic. For instance, cassava contains cyanide in its natural state, but when it’s cooked properly, it can become a good source of carbohydrates.

Big Idea #2: The use of fire has been the biggest constant in the history of cooking and eating.

The earliest form of cooking was heating food. It is unclear how we discovered that fire could be used to heat food, but it was probably a trial and error method. The first time we were able to cook with fire around 1.8 million years ago was the most significant moment in our evolution from apes into humans because cooked food is easier to digest than raw food which gives us more energy and allows us to use our brain better which makes us smarter.

Historically, fireplaces have been used for cooking and heating. They were a center of social activity in the home despite being very dangerous.

It wasn’t unusual for children to fall into the fire or for women’s clothes to catch on fire. In medieval Europe, kitchen staff even worked naked because of how hot it was.

Open fires are not safe because they can cause bronchitis, heart disease and cancer. In developing countries, many people still cook over open fires. But the process of cooking has become much safer due to the introduction of closed ovens and stoves in the U.S. and Europe during the Industrial Revolution.

For a long time, people were skeptical of using gas stoves and electric cooking. However, they became more common in the 19th century as gas stoves began to appear during that era. Electric cooking was increasingly popular from the 1920s onward. Although we’ve managed to reduce some of the inherent danger associated with early methods of cooking over time, our fascination with fire still remains strong today; think about how much fun it is to have a campfire or barbecue!