Ancient Israelite cuisine
Encyclopedia
Ancient Israelite Cuisine refers to the food
eaten by the ancient Israelites during a period of over a thousand years, from the beginning of the Israelite presence
in the Land of Israel
at the beginning of the Iron Age
until the Roman period
. The dietary staples were bread
, wine
and olive oil
, but also included, in varying degrees, legumes, fruit
s and vegetable
s, dairy product
s, fish
and meat
. Religious beliefs, which prohibited the consumption of certain foods, shaped the Israelite diet. There was considerable continuity in the main components of the diet over time, despite the introduction of new foodstuffs at various stages and the food of ancient Israel was similar to that of other ancient Mediterranean
diets.
and comparative evidence from the wider region of the ancient Levant
:
The primary written source for the period is the Hebrew Bible
, the largest collection of written documents surviving from ancient Israel. Other texts, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls
, Apocryphal works
, the New Testament
, the Mishnah
and the Talmud
also provide information. Epigraphic
sources include ostraca from Samaria
and Arad
.
The Bible provides names of plants and animals that were used for food, such as the lists of permitted and forbidden animals
(for example, and ), and the lists of foods brought to the king’s
table (for example) or the foods that the Israelites are said to have longed for after leaving Egypt . These lists indicate the potential foods that were available, but not necessarily how regularly the food was eaten or how significant it was in the cuisine, which needs to be derived from other sources.
Archaeological remains include the items used for the production of food, such as wine
or olive presses; stone and metal implements used in the preparation of food; and amphora
e, jars, storerooms and grain pits used for storage. Animal bones provide evidence of meat consumption, the types of animals eaten, and whether they were kept for milk production or other uses, while paleobotanical
remains, such as seeds or other carbonized
or desiccated plant remains provide information about plant foods.
Using both written and archaeological data, some comparisons can be drawn between the food of ancient Israel and its neighbors. Although there is much information about the foods of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia
, the inferences that can be made are limited due to differences in topography
and climate
; Israelite agriculture also depended on rainfall rather than the river-based irrigation of these two civilizations, resulting in the preference for different crops. Ugarit
and Phoenicia
were closer neighbors of ancient Israel, and shared a topography and climate similar to that of ancient Israel. Thus, conclusions about the food and drink in ancient Israel have been made with some confidence from this evidence.
and traditions that developed in Israel and Babylonia
during the Talmudic period (200 CE – 500 CE), and may still be discerned in the various culinary styles that have developed among Jewish communities
since then.
and emmer
wheat were domesticated and cultivated in the Jordan River Valley as early as the 9th century BCE. Archaeologists have found the carbonized seeds of two kinds of primitive wheat, einkorn and emmer, and two-rowed barley, in the earliest levels of digs at Jericho
, one of the first inhabited cities in the world.
During the Pottery Neolithic period
(6000 – 4300 BCE), the development of pottery
enabled people to produce portable containers for the transportation and storage of food, and an economy based on agriculture
and herding
developed. Archaeological evidence indicates that figs, lentils and broad beans were being cultivated from Neolithic times.
During the Chalcolithic period (4300 – 3300 BCE), large pottery containers indicative of settled peoples, appear in the archaeological record. Date palm
cultivation began in the Jordan River Valley, and the earliest date pits have been discovered at Ein Gedi
by the Dead Sea
. In the Golan
, olives trees were grown and olive oil was produced there.
Chickpea
cultivation dates back to the Bronze Age (3300 – 1200 BCE)
and grapes and olives became important crops in the hill country. Wine and oil were traded for wheat with the cities on the coastal plain, and for meat and skins with semi-nomadic herders. Wine and carobs were also exported to Egypt during this period. At Arad
in the northern Negev, the remains of wheat, barley and legumes have been found, along with stone lined storage pits for grain from this period. Pottery was imported from Cyprus
and Mycenae
in Greece
for the first time, probably for use as good quality tableware. After the Bronze Age collapse
of urban culture, there was an increase in herding and the disappearance of smaller agricultural communities.
and the northern Negev
, and later in the Galilee
, while the Philistines and other Sea Peoples arrived at roughly the same time and settled in the coastal regions. Pastoralism
and animal husbandry
remained important, and walled open spaces in villages that probably served as paddocks have been discovered. The construction of terraces in the hills, and of additional plastered cisterns for water storage, enabled more cultivation than before. Storage pits and silos were dug into the ground to hold grain. Under the united Israelite monarchy, central store cities were built, and greater areas of the northern Negev came under cultivation. The Gezer agricultural calendar
detailing the crops that were raised, dates from this period.
After the division of the Israelite kingdom, Jerusalem and a number of other cities expanded, supported by the surrounding villages and farms. These were called “daughters of” the major towns in the Hebrew Bible (for example, and ). Large food storage facilities and granaries were built, such as the city of Hazor. During the later Iron Age (Iron Age II) period, roughly the same period as the Israelite and Judean monarchies, olive oil and wine were produced on a large scale for commerce and export, as well as for local consumption.
The ancient Israelites depended on bread, wine and oil as the basic dietary staples and this trio is often mentioned in the Bible (for example, and ) and in other texts, such as the Samaria
and Arad
ostraca. Written and archaeological evidence indicate that the diet also included other products from plants, trees and animals. Seven basic agricultural products, called the Seven Species
, are listed in the Bible: wheat, barley, figs, grapes, olives, pomegranates, and dates . The Bible also often describes the land of Israel as a land "flowing with milk and honey" (for example).
The cuisine maintained many consistent traits based on the main products available from the early Israelite period until the Roman period
, even though new foods became available during this extended time. For example, rice
was introduced during the Persian era
; during the Hellenistic period, as trade with the Nabateans increased, more spices became available, at least for those who could afford them, and more Mediterranean fish were imported into the cities; and during the Roman period, sugar cane was introduced.
after the destruction of the Second Temple
in 70 CE or AD
and the beginning of the Jewish Diaspora
. Bread, wine, and olive oil were seen as direct links to the three main crops of ancient Israel — wheat, grapes, and olives. In the Bible, this trio is described as representing the divine
response to human needs and particularly the need for the seasonal rains vital for the successful cultivation of these three crops. . The significance of wine, bread and oil is indicated by their incorporation into Jewish religious
ritual
, with the blessings
over wine and bread for Sabbath
and holiday meals and at religious ceremonies such as weddings
, and the lighting of Sabbath and festival lights with olive oil.
when it was available in the spring and summer, and ate butter and cheese. Figs and grapes were the fruits most commonly eaten, while dates, pomegranates and other fruits and nuts were eaten more occasionally. Wine was the most popular beverage and sometimes other fermented beverages were produced. Olives were used primarily for their oil. Meat, usually goat and mutton, was eaten rarely and was reserved for special occasions such as celebrations, festival meals or sacrificial feasts. Game
, birds, eggs and fish were also eaten, depending on availability.
Most food was eaten fresh and in season. Fruits and vegetables had to be eaten as they ripened and before they spoiled. People had to contend with periodic episodes of hunger and famine; producing enough food required hard and well-timed labor, and the climatic conditions resulted in unpredictable harvests and the need to store as much food as possible. Thus, grapes were made into raisins and wine; olives were made into oil; figs, beans and lentils were dried; and grains were stored for use throughout the year. The diet was essentially vegetarian. A typical daily meal is illustrated by the biblical description of the rations that Abigail
brought to David’s
group: bread, wine, roasted grain, raisins and fig cakes .
Grain
products comprised the majority of the food consumed by the ancient Israelites. The staple food was bread, and it was such a vital part of each meal that the Hebrew
word for bread, lehem, also referred to food in general. The supreme importance of bread to the ancient Israelites is also demonstrated by the fact that Biblical Hebrew has at least a dozen words for bread, and bread features in numerous Hebrew proverb
s (for example, ). Bread was eaten at just about every meal, and is estimated to have provided from 50 to 70 percent of an ordinary person’s daily calories
. The bread eaten until the end of the Israelite monarchy was mainly made from barley flour; during the Second Temple period, bread from wheat flour become predominant.
Porridge
and gruel
were made from ground grain, water, salt and butter. This mixture also formed the basis for cakes, to which oil and fruits were sometimes added before baking.
The Israelites cultivated both wheat
and barley
. These two grains are mentioned first in the biblical list of the Seven Species of the land of Israel and their importance as food is also seen in the celebration of the barley harvest at the festival of Shavuot
and of the wheat harvest at the festival of Sukkot
.
Rice
was introduced during the early Second Temple period through contact with the Persians. By the Roman period, rice had become an important export, and the Jerusalem Talmud
states about rice that “there is none like it outside Israel,” and that notable rabbis served rice at the Passover seder
.
Barley
(hordeum vulgare) was the most important grain during the biblical period, and this was recognized ritually on the second day of Passover
in the Omer offering, consisting of barley flour from the newly ripened crop. Furthermore, its significance to Israelite society, not only as a source of food, is illustrated by the biblical method for measuring a field by the amount of barley (rather than of wheat) with which it could be sown.
Barley was initially predominant because it matured earlier and tolerated harsher conditions than wheat, growing in areas with less rainfall and poorer soils, such as the northern Negev and the hill country. It had a high yield potential and was resistant to insect infestation. It could be sown without plowing, and could therefore be grown on small plots of land that oxen or even donkeys could not reach, and it did not need artificial irrigation. It ripened a month earlier than wheat and was thus available to replenish supplies used up during the winter sooner than wheat, and also provide some food security
if the more vulnerable wheat crop was poor or failed.
Two varieties of barley were cultivated: two rowed and sixed rowed. Two rowed barley was the older, hulled form; six rowed barley was unhulled and easier to thresh, and since the kernels remained intact, store for longer periods. Hulled barley was thus the prevalent type during the Iron Age, but gruels made from it must have had a gritty taste due to the barley’s tough outer layers.
Bread was primarily made from barley flour during the Iron Age , as barley was more widely and easily grown, and was thus more available, cheaper, and could be made into bread without a leavening agent
even though wheat flour was regarded as superior. It was presumably made from dough that was a simple mixture of barley flour and water, divided into small pieces, formed by hand into round shapes and then baked.
However, barley declined as the staple from the biblical period, to a poverty food by the end of the Second Temple period, and by the Talmudic era it was regarded mostly as animal fodder
.
wheat (triticum dicoccum) was initially the most widespread variety of wheat, as it grew well in the warm climate and was resistant to fungal rot
. It was high yielding, with large grains and relatively high amounts of gluten
, and bread made from emmer wheat flour was thus fairly light in texture. However, emmer required time-consuming pounding or roasting to remove its husk
, and during the Iron Age, durum
wheat (triticum durum), a descendent of emmer, gradually replaced emmer and became the favored grain for making fine flour. Durum grew well in the rich soil of the larger valleys of the central and northern areas of the country, where rainfall exceeded 225 millimeters per year, was higher yielding than emmer, and its grains released more easily from the chaff
. It could therefore be separated from the husk without roasting or pounding first, thus reducing the work required for threshing, and also leaving most of the grains whole, which was better for longer storage.
However, durum is a hard grain and was difficult to grind with the early hand-held grindstones
. The flour also had to be sifted repeatedly to obtain fine flour (such as the solet required in the Temple offerings). Thus, durum was primarily used for porridges, or parboiled and dried, or roasted and boiled, and barley flour continued to be used for making bread, until another hybrid of emmer, common or “bread” wheat
(triticum aestivum) replaced barley as the primary grain after the Greek conquest of the land of Israel and, together with durum wheat, became widespread during the Greco-Roman period, constituting the bulk of the grain crop by the end of the Second Temple period. The introduction of common wheat, which contained more starch
and had a higher level of gluten, spread the use of wheat for bread-making and led to the production of loaves that were more lightly textured than barley and durum wheat breads.
, milling and baking
improved both the quantity and the quality of the grain and the means for preparation that were available, from the beginning of the Iron Age until the end of the Second Temple period:
In the early Iron Age, grain was threshed to remove it from the stalks by beating it with sticks or by oxen treading on it. This usually broke most of the grain kernels
, which limited their storage time because broken kernels spoil more quickly than unbroken ones. The development of the threshing-board
, which was pulled over the stalks by oxen, left most of the grain kernels intact and enhanced their storage time. Numerous threshing floor
s and threshing boards have been discovered at archaeological sites of ancient Israel
.
Once separated from the stalks, the grain was used in a number of ways: Most simply, unripe kernels of grain were eaten fresh, particularly in the spring, before ripe grain was available, and both unripe and ripe grain was roasted over fire for immediate use. Ripe grains of wheat were also parboiled and dried, like modern bulgur
, and then prepared as porridge. Whole or cracked grain was also used to make gruel and in stews. Most frequently, grains were ground into flour to prepare bread.
was the main source of nourishment in biblical times and making bread was a daily activity:
Bread making began with the milling
of the grain. It was a difficult and time-consuming task, performed by women. Each household stored its own grain, and it is estimated that it required at least three hours of daily effort to produce enough flour to make sufficient bread for a family of five. The earliest milling was performed with a pestle and mortar, or a stone quern
consisting of a large lower stone that held the grain and a smooth upper stone that was moved back and forth over the grains . This often left small pieces of grit in the flour. The use of the millstone became more widespread during the Iron Age, resulting in greater speed and increased production of flour. Smaller versions for household use, the rotary or beehive quern, appeared during the early Persian period.
After the grain was milled into flour, it was mixed with water and kneaded in a large trough. For dough made with wheat flour, starter, called seor, was added. The starter was prepared by reserving a small portion of dough from a previous batch to absorb the yeasts in the air and thus help leaven the new dough. Seor thus gave the bread a sourdough
flavor.
Once prepared, the dough could be baked in various ways:
Initially, the dough was placed directly on the heated stones of a cooking fire or in a griddle
or pan made of clay or iron . In the time of the First Temple, two types of oven were used for baking bread: the jar oven
and the pit-oven
. The jar-oven was a large pottery container, narrowing into an opening toward the top; fuel was burned on the inside to heat it and the dough was pressed against the outside to bake. The pit-oven was a clay-lined excavation in the ground in which the fuel was burned and then pushed aside, and the loaves were baked on the heated surface. People also began placing a convex dome, initially earthenware and later metal, over the pit-oven and cooking the flatbreads on the dome instead of on the ash-covered surface; this type of oven is probably what was meant by the biblical machabat, often translated as “griddle”.
The Persians introduced a clay oven called a tanur (similar to the Indian tandoor
), which had an opening at the bottom for the fire, and through which the bread was placed to be baked on the inner wall of the upper chamber from the heat of the oven and ashes after the flames had died down. This continued to be the way in which Yemenite Jews
baked bread until modern times. The remains of clay ovens, and fragments of bread trays have been found in several archaeological excavations.
All these methods produced only quite thin loaves and the custom was thus to break bread
rather than cut it. The bread was soft and pliable and used for dipping and sopping up gravies and juices.
The Romans introduced an oven called a "furn" ("purni" in Talmudic Aramaic), a large, wood-burning, stone-lined oven with a bottom on which the dough or baking sheet was placed. This provided a major advance in bread and pastry baking, and made the baking of much thicker loaves possible.
A variety of breads was produced. Probably most common were unleavened flat loaves
called ugah or kikkar. Another type was a thin wafer, known as a rakik. A thicker loaf, known as hallah was made with the best quality flour, usually for ritual purposes.
Bread was sometimes enriched by the addition of flour from legumes . The Mishna (Hallah
2:2) mentions bread dough made with fruit juice instead of water. The sugar in the juice
, interacting with the flour and water, provided some leavening and sweetened the bread. The Israelites also sometimes added fennel
and cumin
to bread dough for flavor, and dipped their bread in vinegar, olive or sesame oil for extra flavor.
s, broad or fava beans
, chickpea
s and pea
s were the main element in the diet and were the main source of protein, since meat was rarely eaten.
Broad beans, chickpeas and lentils are the only legumes mentioned in the Bible but lentils, broad beans, chickpeas, fenugreek
, field peas and bitter vetch have been found at Iron Age Israelite sites. By the Roman period, legumes are mentioned frequently in other texts. They are cited as one of the elements of the “wife’s food basket” in the Mishna (Ketubot 5:8), by which it is estimated that legumes supplied 17% of daily calories at that time.
Lentils were the most important of the legumes and were used to make pottage
s and soups, as well as cakes made from ground roasted lentils pressed and fried in oil and called ashishim, such as those that King David is described as distributing to the people when the Ark of the Covenant
was brought to Jerusalem.
Stews made of lentils or beans were common and they were cooked with onion, garlic and leeks for flavor. Fresh legumes were also roasted, or dried and stored for extended periods. They were then cooked in a soup or a stew. The Bible mentions roasted legumes , and relates how Jacob
prepared bread and a pottage of lentils for Esau
.
Vegetables that were commonly eaten included squash, leek
s, garlic
and onion
s, black radish
es, net or muskmelon
s (sometimes misidentified as the cucumber
) and watermelon
s. Other vegetables played a minor role in the diet of the ancient Israelites. Field greens and root plants were generally not cultivated and were gathered seasonally when they grew in the wild. Leafy plants included dandelion greens
and the young leaves of the orach
plant.
Leeks, onions and garlic were eaten both cooked in stews, and uncooked with bread, and their popularity may be indicated by the observation in the Bible that they are among the foods that the Israelites yearned for after leaving Egypt. Squash and melons were eaten raw, or flavored with vinegar
. Black radishes were also were eaten raw when in season during the autumn and winter. The Talmud mentions the use of radish seeds to produce oil, and considered eating radishes to have health benefits.
Wild herbs
were collected and were eaten uncooked or cooked. These are known to have included garden rocket and mallow
and both leaf chicory
and endive
.
Wild lettuce
, known as chazeret, was a leafy herb with prickly, red tinged leaves that became bitter as they matured. It was cultivated from around 800 BCE. Sweeter head-lettuce was only developed and introduced by the Romans. Bitter herbs
eaten at the Passover sacrifice
with the unleavened bread, matza
, were known as merorim. "Chazeret" is listed in the Mishna (Pesahim
2:6) as the preferred bitter herb for this Passover ritual, along with other bitter herbs, including chicory or endive (ulshin), horehound
(tamcha), reichardia or eryngo
(charchavina) and wormwood
(maror).
Mushrooms
, especially of the Boletus
type, were gathered in many areas, particularly when plentiful after a major rainfall. The Talmud mentions mushrooms in connection with their exemption from tithe
s and as a desert at the Passover seder.
Sesame
seeds were used in the preparation of oil
, or were eaten dry, or were added to dishes such as stews as a flavoring; the leftovers after pressing out the oil were eaten in a cake form. The Hebrew for sesame, shumshum, is related to the Akkadian
samassammu, meaning “oil plant”, as the seeds contain about 50% oil, which was pressed from the seeds. Sesame is not mentioned in the Bible, but the Mishna lists sesame oil as suitable for lighting the Sabbath lights, and the oil was also used for frying.
was an important source of food for the Israelites, particularly grapes, olives and figs. Grapes were grown mostly for wine, although some were eaten fresh at harvest time, or dried as raisins for storage while olives were grown exclusively for their oil, until the Roman period. Other fruits that were eaten were the date, pomegranate and sycamore fig.
The ancient Israelites built terraces of leveled areas in the hill country for planting a variety of crops, including grains, vegetables and fruit tree
s. All the trees, with the exception of the olive, produced fruit that could be eaten fresh or be made into fresh juice while in season. Fruit was also processed for later use in a variety of ways: Fruit with high sugar content was fermented to make alcoholic beverages; grapes were most commonly used for this. Fruit was also boiled down into thick, sweet syrup, referred to in the Bible as dvash (honey). Grapes, figs, dates and apricots were also dried and preserved individually or put on a string or pressed into cakes. Since dried fruit are an efficient source of energy, they were prepared as provisions for journeys and long marches.
is one of the biblical Seven Species and one of the three elements of the “Mediterranean triad” in Israelite cuisine. Olive oil
was used for not only as food and for cooking, but also for lighting, sacrificial offerings, ointment, and anointment for priestly or royal office.
The olive tree was well suited to the climate and soil of the Israelite highlands and a significant part of the hill country was allocated to the cultivation of olive trees, which were one of ancient Israel’s most important natural resources. Olive oil was more versatile and longer-lasting than the oil from other plants, such as sesame, and was also considered to be the best-tasting.
Although olives were used to produce oil from the Bronze Age, it was only by the Roman period that the techniques were introduced to cure olives in lye
and then brine
to remove their natural bitterness and make them edible as a food.
Olives were harvested in the late summer and were processed for oil by crushing the olives, pressing the mash and separating the oil from the flesh. In the early Iron Age period, this was done by treading the olives in basins cut into rock, or with a mortar or stone on a flat slab. In the later Iron Age period, the introduction of the beam press made large scale processing possible.
The discovery of many ancient olive presses in various locations indicates that olive oil production was highly developed in ancient Israel. The oil production center dating from the 7th century BCE discovered at Ekron
, a Philistine city, has over one hundred large olive oil presses, and is the most complete olive oil production center from ancient times to be discovered. It indicates that ancient Israel was a major producer of olive oil for its residents as well as for other parts of the ancient Near East
, such as Egypt and especially Mesopotamia. In addition to the large-scale olive oil production for commerce and export, presses have been found in ordinary houses, indicating that this was also a cottage industry.
Archaeological remains at Masada
and other sites indicate that the most common olive cultivar was the indigenous Nabali, followed by the Souri. In Roman times, other olive cultivars were imported from Syria and Egypt.
There is also some written information about olive oil. The Bible describes its use in relation to certain sacrifices in which olive oil is used (for example, . However, these sacrificial “recipes” can be assumed to represent some of the everyday uses of oil and methods for cooking and frying. Olive oil was mixed with flour to make bread in the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath and is also noted as a valuable product for eating . Olive oil is also mentioned on the Samaria
and Arad
ostraca
.
The consumption of olive oil varied with social class – it was less available to the poor, but it may have become more available later in the Israelite period as the means of production improved and became more widespread. By early Roman times, the Mishna indicates that it was one of the four essential foods that a husband had to provide his wife, and it has been calculated that at a minimum, this represented about 11 percent of the overall calories supplied by the “food basket” described at that time.
s are another of the biblical Seven Species and were used mainly for the production of wine
, although they were also eaten fresh and dried. Grapes were dried in the sun to produce raisin
s, which could then be stored for a long time. Raisins were also pressed into clusters and dried as cakes, which kept the interior raisins softer.
Grapes were also used to produce a thick, honey-like liquid, called grape honey (dvash anavim) that was used as a sweetener. Grape honey was made by treading the grapes in vats, but instead of fermenting the liquid produced, it was boiled to evaporate the water content, leaving behind the thick grape-honey syrup.
were an important source of food. Figs were cultivated throughout the land of Israel and fresh or dried figs were part of the daily diet. A common way of preparing dried figs was to chop them and press them into a cake.
Figs are one of the biblical Seven Species and are frequently mentioned in the Bible (for example, , and ). The remains of dried figs have been discovered from as early as the Neolithic period in Gezer, Israel and Gilgal in the Jordan Valley
.
The fig tree (ficus carica) grew well in the hill country and produced two crops a season. Early ripening figs were regarded as delicacy because of their sweetness and were eaten fresh. Figs ripening in the later harvest were often dried and strung into a chain, or pressed into hard round or square-shaped cakes called a develah, and stored as a major source of winter food. The blocks of dried fig were sliced and eaten like bread.
The Mishna mentions figs as one the components of the prescribed “wife’s food basket” and they are estimated to have constituted 16% of the overall calories of the basket.
called “date honey” (dvash temarim) for use as a sweetener. This syrup was prepared by soaking the dates in water for some time until they disintegrated and then boiling the resulting liquid down into thick syrup. The honey in the Biblical reference of “a land flowing with milk and honey” is date honey.
Fresh, ripe dates were available from the mid- to late-summer. Some were sun-dried and pressed into blocks to dry completely, and then used throughout the year, especially as food for travelers. Dates were also fermented into one of the “strong drinks” referred to in the Bible as “shechar”.
The date palm required a hot and dry climate and mostly grew and produced fruit in the Jordan Rift Valley
, from Jericho to the Sea of Galilee
. In these arid areas, the date was sometimes the only plant food available, and was a primary component of the diet, but it was less important elsewhere.
Pomegranate
s were usually eaten fresh, although occasionally they were used to make juice
or wine, or sun-dried for use when the fresh fruit was out of season. They probably played a minor part in Israelite cuisine, but were symbolically important, as adornments on the hem of the robe of the high priest
and the Temple pillars, and embossed on coinage, and are also listed in the Bible as one of the Seven Species of the Land of Israel.
The sycamore fig (ficus sycamorus) was very common in the warmer parts of Israel and was grown primarily for its wood, but it provided a steady supply of small figs, eaten mainly by the poor.
Other native trees producing fruits included the carob, which was probably popular due to its sweet taste, and the black mulberry.
The tapuah, which means “apple
” in modern Hebrew, is mentioned in the Bible, but it is not clear if this referred to another fruit, such as the quince
.
Almond
s, walnuts and pistachio
s were eaten and are mentioned in the Bible. Almonds were widespread in the region from prehistoric times and the Bible mentions almonds (shaked) and pistachios (botnim) as among the “choice fruits of the land” sent by Jacob as a gift to the ruler of Egypt . Almonds and pistachios were probably eaten primarily by the wealthy. The walnut reached Israel from Mesopotamia by at least 2000 BCE
and is mentioned once in the Bible . Walnuts became common during the Second Temple period and so widespread that the word for walnut, egoz, became the generic Hebrew word for nut at that time.
, cistern
s or rivers. They also drank milk
(for example, as mentioned in the Bible in ), often in the form of sour milk
, thin yoghurt
or whey
, when it was available in the spring and summer. They drank fresh juices from fruits in season as well. The most strongly preferred beverage was wine, although some beer may have also been produced and wine was an important part of the diet and a source of calories, sugar, and iron. Making wine was also a practical way to preserve fruit juices for long-term storage. Usually, wine was made from grapes for everyday use, as well as for rituals, such as sacrificial libations. Less often, wine was made from pomegranates and dates.
, and both archaeological evidence and written records indicate the significant cultivation of grapes in ancient Israel and the popularity of wine-drinking. The production capacity apparent from archaeological remains and the frequent biblical references to wine suggest that it was the principal alcoholic beverage
of the ancient Israelites. Based on the remains of wine production facilities and storage rooms, it has been estimated that on average, people could have consumed one liter of wine per person per day.
Many rock-hewn winepresses
and vats, dating to the biblical period, have been found. One typical example at Gibeon has a wide surface for treading the grapes and a series of collecting vats. Archaeological finds at Ashkelon
and Gibeon indicate large large-scale wine production in the eighth
and seventh centuries BCE
, which most likely developed to supply the Assyrian empire
, and then the Babylonia
ns, as well as the local population. Vineyards are mentioned many times in the Bible, including in detailed descriptions of the method for establishing a vineyard
and the types of vines
. The Bible refers to several types of wine and one of the Arad
ostraca
also mentions wine among the supplies being sent to a garrison of soldiers.
Another indication of the importance of wine in ancient Israel is that Hebrew contains numerous terms for various stages and types of vines, grape varieties and words for wine. The word yayin was used both as a generic word for wine and as a term for wine in its first year, once it had undergone sufficient fermentation
from the initial stage, when it was called tirosh. The type of wine was determined by the grapes, the time allowed for fermentation, and the age of the wine.
The often coarse and unrefined taste of ancient wine was adjusted to make it more drinkable. Spices were added directly to the wine to improve the aroma, and other ingredients, such as honey, pepper, herbs and even lime
, resin
or seawater were added to improve the flavor or disguise a poor-tasting wine. Wine was also sweetened
by the addition of grape juice syrup
. Wine was also sometimes given an aroma by rubbing the winepress with wood resin. On the other hand, wine could also be added to drinking water to improve the taste, especially towards the end of the summer when rainwater had been standing in a cistern for at least six months. This also had the beneficial effect
of lowering the bacteria content of the water.
After the grape harvest
in mid-summer, most grapes were taken to wine presses to extract their juice for winemaking
. Once fermented, wine was transferred to wineskins or large amphora
e for storage. Israelite amphorae were typically tall with large handles and little decoration, and the handles were often inscribed with the name of the city in which the wine had been produced, the winemaker’s stamp and sometimes the year and the vintage
. Amphorae made long term storage possible, especially in caves or cool cellars. Glass bottles were introduced only in the 1st century CE by the Romans.
The insides of amphorae were often coated with a preservative resin, such as from the terebinth
, and this imparted a pine flavor and aroma to the wine. Before the jars were sealed with pitch
, they were filled completely and often topped with a thin layer of olive oil to prevent spoilage due to exposure to air.
During the Greek period
, the style of winemaking changed. Ripe grapes were first dried
to concentrate the sugars
, and these then produced a much sweeter and higher alcohol content wine that needed to be diluted with water to be drinkable. Before this, watered-down wine was disparaged, but by the time of the Talmud, wine that did not require dilution with water was considered unfit for consumption.
, produced by brewing
barley, was another alcoholic beverage common in the ancient Near East. Beer was the primary beverage of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia and it can be assumed that in Israel, which is located between the two, beer was also known. The biblical term sekhar may refer to beer or to alcoholic drinks in general.
The production of bread and beer were closely linked, since barley was the same key ingredient used for both, and most of the tools used in beer production, such as mortars, querns and winnowing baskets were also the same as for bread making. Archaeological evidence specific to beer making is thus uncommon, and earlier indications were that the ancient Israelites did not often drink beer. More recently, Iron Age sites in Israel have produced remains such as beer jugs, bottles, strainers and stoppers, all of which provide evidence that the Israelites drank beer. Nonetheless, the widespread cultivation of grapes, used primarily for winemaking, indicates that wine drinking was probably far more common than beer drinking.
goat
s and sheep. Goat’s meat was the most common. Fat-tailed sheep
were the predominant variety of sheep in ancient Israel but as sheep were valued more than goats, they were eaten less often. The fat of the tail was considered a delicacy and even until modern times, it was prized in the cuisine of the Mizrahi Jews
. Beef
and venison
were eaten primarily by the elites, and fattened calves provided veal
for the wealthy (for example, as mentioned in the Bible).
For most people, meat was eaten only a few times a year when animals were slaughtered for the major festivals, or at tribal meetings, celebrations such as wedding
s, and for the visits of important guests . Only at the king's table was meat served daily, according to the Bible.
Although most meat was obtained from domesticated animals, meat from hunted animals
was also sometimes available, as the story of Isaac
and Esau , certain Biblical lists (for example), and archaeological evidence indicate. The remains of gazelle
, red deer
and fallow deer
are the most commonly found in the archaeological record. Archaeological evidence from an Iron Age market excavated at Ashkelon shows that game was also sold to those who could not hunt or trap them themselves.
However, meat from wild animals was more common at times of economic distress and in the northern areas, where forests and open land provided a habitat for more wild animals.
Meat was prepared in several different ways. The most common was to cook it with water as a broth or a stew
(for example). Meat stewed with onions, garlic and leeks and flavored with cumin
and coriander
is described on ancient Babylonian cuneiform tablets
, and it is most likely that it was prepared similarly in ancient Israel. Stewed meat was considered to be a dish worthy of serving to honored guests . A less common way to prepare meat was to roast
it over an open fire, but this was done particularly for the meat of the Passover lamb
. For long-term storage, meat was smoked, dried or salted, according to indications in texts and ethnographic studies.
, ducks and geese
, and wild birds such as quail
and partridge
. Remains from archaeological excavations at the Ophel
in Jerusalem and other Iron Age sites show that domestic birds were available, but consumption was small. The inclusion of pigeons and turtledoves in the Biblical sacrifice lists implies that they were raised domestically, and the remains of dovecotes
discovered from the Greek and Roman periods confirm this. Biblical references and archaeological evidence also demonstrate that wild birds were hunted and eaten.
The turtledove
was present from about April to October, while the rock pigeon
was available throughout the year. The pigeon appears to have been domesticated in Sumer
ia and Canaan
during the second millennium BCE
, and remained the predominant fowl
in ancient Israel until the end of the Second Temple period. Nonetheless, to avoid the spread of disease, pigeons could only be raised in small numbers and were thus fairly costly and not a regular part of the diet.
Geese, originally domesticated in ancient Egypt, were raised in ancient Israel. They are most likely the “fattened fowl” on King Solomon’s
table . Goose breeding is also discussed in the Mishna. Like other animals, birds were fattened for consumption on special occasions, and for the wealthy.
It is unclear when chicken
became part of the diet. There are some archaeological remains from Iron Age sites, but these were likely from rooster
s as a fighting bird
, which are also pictured on seals from the period as a symbol of ferocity, such as on the 6th century BCE onyx seal of Jaazaniah. Chicken became common around the 2nd century BCE, and during the Roman period, chickens emerged as an important feature of the cuisine, with the Talmud describing it as “the choicest of birds.” By Roman times pigeons and chickens were the principle poultry.
Until the domestication of the chicken, eggs
were available in limited quantities and were considered a delicacy, as in ancient Egypt. The most common birds – turtledoves and pigeons – were reared for their meat and not for their very small eggs. Biblical references to eggs are only in reference to gathering them from the wild (for example, and ). Eggs seem to have increased in use for food only with the introduction of chickens as food, and were commonly used as food by Roman times.
and mouthbreeders. Saltwater fish discovered in excavations include sea bream, grouper
, meager
and gray mullet
. Most of these come from the Mediterranean
, but in the later Iron Age period, some are from the Red Sea
.
Fishermen supplied fish to inland communities, as remains of fish, including bones and scales, have been discovered at many inland sites. To preserve them for transport, the fish were first smoked or dried and salted. Merchants also imported fish, sometimes from as far as from Egypt, where pickled roe
was an export article. Remains of Nile Perch
from Egypt have been found, and these must have been smoked or dried, before being imported through the trade network that connected ancient Near Eastern societies. Merchants shipped fish to Jerusalem and there was evidently a significant trade in fish; one of the gates of Jerusalem was called the Fish Gate, named for a fish market nearby .
It is unclear to what extent fish played a role in the cuisine, but it is apparent that fish became steadily more available during the Israelite and Judean monarchies. Fish products were salted and dried and sent great distances. However, even in the later Persian, Greek and Roman periods, the cost of preserving and transporting fish must have meant that only wealthier inhabitants of the highland towns and cities could afford it, or those who lived close to the sources, where it was less expensive.
for part of the year, and milk and dairy products were a significant source of food. Dairy products are mentioned in the Bible (for example, , , and , and a repeated description of the Land of Israel in the Bible is “a land flowing with milk and honey” (for example, , , and ).
Fresh milk could not be stored for long without spoiling. Typically, thick sour milk
called laban was drunk because the Israelites stored the milk in skin containers, in which it curdled quickly.
Milk had to be processed to preserve it. This was done by first churning
it, using a goatskin or clay container to separate the butterfat
from the whey
. The butterfat was processed by boiling and then cooling it to make clarified butter
, which could then be stored for a long time. Clarified butter was used principally for cooking and frying. Butter churn
s have been excavated at Beersheba
, dating from the 4th century BCE, and other ancient Israelite sites.
Goat milk and sheep’s milk cheese
s were the most prevalent types of cheese. Soft cheese was made using cloth bags filled with soured milk. The thin liquid was drained through the cloth and soft cheese remained in the bag. A hard cheese was made from fermented soured milk: Milk was poured into special moulds in which it curdled and was then hardened by drying in the sun or by heating and numerous small cheese molds with holes for the draining the whey have been discovered. Cheese is not mentioned often in the Bible, but in one case, David is sent to take a gift of cheese to the commander of the army .
The Mishna and Talmud mention using the sap of fruit trees, such as figs, to harden cheese (a method still used by nomadic herders of the region until modern times). Using fig sap instead of animal enzymes
to make cheese also conformed to the prohibition on mixing meat and milk
.
. The Biblical term “dvash” usually did not mean bee honey, but thick syrup
obtained from grapes, figs or dates. This syrup was similar to the date syrup, or “halek”, that many Mizrahi Jews continue to use in modern times.
The Biblical references to “honey from the crag” or “honey from the rock” could refer either to fig honey, as fig trees commonly grew in rocky outcrops, or to honey collected from wild bees, which made their nests in these places, as they still do in the region until today. The Bible refers to honey from bees in only a few instances, for example, when Samson
eats honey from bees made in the carcass of a lion and when Jonathan eats honey from a honeycomb
, and these references are to honey obtained from the wild.
Nonetheless, the oldest archaeological find relating to beekeeping
discovered to date is an apiary
dating from about 900
BC at Rehov
, a Bronze- and Iron Age site in the Jordan Valley
. The hives, made of straw and unbaked clay, could have housed more than a million bees, and indicate that honey was produced on a large scale. It is most likely that the inhabitants of Tel Rehov imported the bees from Anatolia
because they were less aggressive than the local bees and produced a higher yield of honey. It is also possible that the domestication of bees for honey production was introduced from Egypt during the Iron Age and honey was being obtained from domesticated bees
from late in the Iron Age period.
The most common and important seasoning was salt
, demonstrated by the fact that it is referred to throughout the Bible and its use was mandated with most sacrifices . Salt was obtained from the Mediterranean or the Dead Sea
. It was produced by evaporating seawater from both natural and artificially created drying pans along the Mediterranean coast. It was also obtained by mining salt deposits
, such as at Sodom near the Dead Sea. Salt had to be transported to other locations, so most communities had to purchase it.
Food was also flavored by plants, most native to the region and either cultivated or gathered in the wild, although a few spices were imported. Garlic and onions, and possibly fenugreek
, were used to season cooked foods, as well as being eaten as vegetables. Herbs and spices included caper
s, coriander
, cumin
and black cumin
, dill
, dwarf chicory
, hyssop
, marjoram
, mint
, black mustard
, reichardia, saffron
and thyme
. Some seasonings were imported, such as myrrh
, galbanum
, saffron and cinnamon
, but their high cost limited their widespread use. Spices for special feasts were imported by the wealthy and royalty from Arabia
and India
, and were highly valued. These included various types of pepper
, and ginger
.
Another seasoning was vinegar
, which was produced by extra fermentation of new wine. It was used for seasoning foods, pickling
vegetables, and medicinal purposes.
Fermentation
, oil extraction and drying
were all ways of converting food into products that could be stored. Feeding crops to animals was also a means of "storage on the hoof" with the animals converting the fodder into meat or milk.
Food was cooked in pots made of clay and placed on earthenware stands built in a horseshoe shape, so that the fire could be lit through the opening, under the pot, or pots were suspended above the fire from tripods.
Cooked food included soups and stews that were a mixture of meat and vegetables. Beans and lentils were likely to have been cooked several times a week. However, vegetables, such as squash, garlic, leek and onions were also eaten uncooked.
s eaten by the Israelites fell into two categories: daily meals, and festive or ritual meals.
provides an example of this kind of meal: the harvest workers eat bread, dipped in vinegar, and parched or roasted grain . Agricultural workers, who comprised the largest part of the population, also ate a light meal in the early morning before leaving for their work in the fields .
The second meal was the main meal of the day and was eaten in the evening. In addition to bread, it typically included soup or a stew of vegetables or legumes, served in a common pot into which everyone dipped their bread. Also served from time to time were cheese and fruits such as fresh figs and melon when in season, as well as dried fruits. Water, wine and milk could also accompany the meal.
Small bowls were used for both eating and drinking. Small jugs contained condiments like olive oil, vinegar and sweetners. Wide-mouthed pitchers
held water and milk, while spouted decanter
s with narrow, ridged necks with built-in strainers held wine.
Festive meals were held only from time to time, but they are the ones recorded by biblical and extra-biblical sources. Many biblical stories are set within the context of a meal, such as the accounts of the food Abraham
prepares for his visitors , the stew which Jacob prepares for his father, Isaac, and the Passover meal .
In the story of Abraham hosting the three visitors, Abraham offers cakes, a well prepared young calf, curds, and milk. This meal has similar elements to an earlier meal described in the story of Sinuhe
, an Egyptian nobleman who lived for a time in Canaan around 1900 BCE, at which bread, wine, cooked meat, roast fowl, and dairy products were served.
One of the distinguishing features of the meals of the wealthier social class, as illustrated in the stories of Abraham and Sinuhe, was the more frequent consumption of meat. A description of the provisions for Solomon's kitchen also illustrates this: "Solomon's daily provisions consisted of 30 kor of fine flour and 60 kor of flour, 10 fat oxen, 20 pasture-fed oxen, and 100 sheep and goats, in addition to deer and gazelles, roebucks and fattened geese" . This account describes the provisions that were possible to obtain for those with the resources to purchase them and indicates they were sufficient to provide sumptuous meals for thousands of people.
Another example of a lavish meal celebrating an important occasion is the inauguration of the Temple by Solomon . Similar meals are described regarding Hezekiah's
temple consecration and Passover celebration .
In contrast to the simplicity of the daily fare of ordinary people, the cuisine of the royal courts of the ancient Near East was sophisticated, and it is assumed that the dishes served at the table of King Solomon and other Israelite kings were also elaborate. King David had officials who were in charge of wine cellars, olive stores, cattle, olive and fig trees and the royal kitchen was a complex organization.
The kings of Israel are recorded as having displayed an extraordinary measure of royal hospitality, like other kings of the ancient Near East who held elaborate banquets. Solomon’s royal table is described as providing such a variety of foods that the Queen of Sheba is said to have been amazed that the reports of Solomon’s wealth did not exceed what she had seen . Royal entertainment in Israel included music , large numbers of guests , and presumably many servers and cupbearers, though these are not expressly mentioned in the Bible.
Feasts and banquets were important social and political tools throughout Israel’s history, especially in the early years of the Israelite monarchy, when an invitation to the king’s table was important for creating and maintaining political support and was also an important marker of social status and influence.
Regular meals too, developed as expressions of common identity, social unity and communal celebration. By the Roman period, Jewish communities came together at banquets for both food and company and the weekly Sabbath meal was an occasion for families to gather and enjoy both food and company.
The practice of hospitality
was a fundamental custom of Israelite society and serving food was integral to the hosting of guests. As in other ancient Near Eastern societies, hospitality for guests, both known and strangers, was motivated by the desire to win divine pleasure and reward in an after-life, and more pragmatically, in the expectation that this kindness would be returned when needed. Additionally, in ancient Israel, the belief that God had delivered Israel from slavery resulted in the social imperative and religious commandment
to look after guests and strangers as an act of recognition and gratitude.
The importance of hospitality to the Israelites can be inferred from the texts of the Bible, in numerous instances, including the stories of Abraham hosting the messengers, Gideon’s
call to leadership , the hospitality of the woman from Zarephath towards the Prophet Elijah and the Shunammite woman towards Elisha , David’s hosting of Mephiboshet, son of Jonathan and Hezekiah’s invitation to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel to celebrate the Passover in Jerusalem .
Meals at which important guests were present were viewed as special occasions, and as such, meat was served. The order in which the guests were served indicated the recognition of the social status of the guest. The choice of meat and dishes indicated the importance of the occasion. The Bible illustrates this in relating how Samuel
hosted Saul
, who, seated at the head of the hall is served first with a portion of meat that has been especially reserved for him . Certain parts of the animal, such as the breast and the right thigh, were considered to be the best portions and were reserved for the most honored participants in the meal. Guests were always served before family members. The host would also sit with the guests to encourage them to eat and see to all their needs, as related in the story of Abraham, who waited on his visitors while they ate.
was reserved for the priest
(kohen) or the ordinary Israelite who brought the offering was permitted to eat a portion with his family at a festive meal. The offerings considered “most holy” were eaten by the males of the priests in the court of the Temple sanctuary . The meal was considered to be a part of the priest’s duties. Other offerings could be eaten by the priests with their families in any ritually clean place . The ordinary Israelite had to eat his share within a fixed time, with his family, guests, and any Levite
s and strangers that he invited.
Depending on the type of sacrifice, the animals that were brought as sacrifices could be a lamb, kid, goat, ram, calf, bull or cow; bird offerings were doves and turtledoves (pigeons). Of these, the guilt offering
(asham) and the communal peace offering
(shalmei tzibur) were eaten only by the male priests (kohanim). Other offerings, such as the Firstborn offering , could be eaten by the priests and other members of their households, while for the personal peace offering (shalmei yachid) and Thanksgiving offering , the breast and thigh meat were eaten by the priests and other members of their households and the remainder by ordinary Israelites. The Tithe offering could be eaten by anyone and the Passover offering
was eaten by all who had purchased a share in the sacrifice.
Meal offerings called mincha all consisted primarily of flour and were either completely or partially burned on the altar. Those not entirely burned on the altar were eaten by the priests. Some mincha offerings were fried or baked before being offered. Types of mincha included fine flour (solet) mixed with oil and of which a portion was given to the kohen; flour mixed with oil and fried on a griddle or on a pan; bread called challot mixed with oil and baked in an oven; and wafers (rekikim) smeared with oil baked in an oven.
There were also baked goods, all made of wheat flour and baked in an oven, which were not burned on the altar. These were the twelve unleavened and specially shaped showbread
s, eaten by the priests after they had been displayed; two loaves of leavened bread prepared for the festival of Shavuot and eaten by the priests; thanksgiving breads, which included leavened bread, unleavened bread, unleavened wafers and scalded loaves, with one of each kind given to the priests and the remainder eaten by the owner and guests; and the unleavened loaves and wafers accompanying the Nazirite’s
sacrificial ram, one of each kind given to the priests and the remainder eaten by the Nazirite and guests.
Whole extended families or clans also participated in a sacrifice that was offered on occasions such as the New Moon
, and it is referred to as both the “sacrifice of days” and a kinship sacrifice. In the early Israelite period, before the centralization of sacrificial offerings as an exclusive part of the Temple services, these sacrifices were offered at various locations. David is described as leaving Saul’s table to participate with his family in Bethlehem
and Elkanah
goes to Shiloh to participate with his household in the annual sacrifice .
Perhaps the oldest and most important feast celebrated by the Israelites (and later by Jews) is the Passover. The original feast, with its origins in the story of the Exodus, consisted of a sacrificial lamb, bitter herbs and unleavened bread eaten by each family at home. Under the Israelite monarchy, and with the establishment of the Temple in Jerusalem
, the sacrifice and celebration of Passover became centralized as one of the three pilgrimage festival. Families who were able to travel to Jerusalem ate the Passover meal together in Jerusalem. Those who could not make the pilgrimage celebrated the holiday by holding a special meal and observing the Feast of Unleavened Bread
.
, and the manner of their preparation. The cuisine of the Israelites thus differed from that of their neighbors in significant ways. For example, ancient Mesopotamian recipes describe foods cooked with animal blood and milk added to meat stews; this would have been avoided by the ancient Israelites.
Only animals specifically slaughtered for food or for use in the sacrificial service could be eaten. Detailed lists of which animals, birds and fish could be eaten and which were prohibited appear in and , and animal bones found in the archaeological record tend to support this, with some exceptions. For the Israelites, food was one way for self-definition. While it is impossible to know to what extent dietary laws
were observed, self-definition is a most likely the basis for certain biblical lists listing different kinds of animals permitted or forbidden for consumption. The taboo against eating
certain animals, particularly the pig, may have developed from the early Iron Age.
Archaeological evidence from various sites shows that the consumption of pork
, while limited, was higher in the early Iron Age but had mostly disappeared during the later Iron Age. Sites in the highlands and the coastal plains show low levels of pig utilization in the early Iron Age, but on the coastal plain, excavations such as Ekron show a higher consumption of pig; this is usually associated with the arrival of the Philistines. However, even at Philistine sites, pig remains were a small proportion of the bones discovered and decline after the initial period of settlement. This may have been due to unsuitable environmental factors for raising pigs. At archaeological excavations at Mount Ebal
in Samaria
, from the period immediately after the Israelite conquest, animal bones discovered were only from animals considered permissible, such as cattle, sheep, goats and deer.
In addition, some taboos did not relate to the source of the food but to the way in which they were prepared, as in the prohibition against boiling a young goat in its mother’s milk (and mentioned in the Bible in three separate instances: , ). Milk and its by-products served as offerings in Near Eastern pagan worship to gods and kings and milk was used in connection with the phenomenon of reproduction, and a goat kid would be cooked in its mother's milk. Thus, the Israelite practice was to avoid an act similar to that carried out by the Canaanites as part of their cult worship
.
The Israelites, like other ancient peoples, believed that an animal’s blood carried the soul of the animal and therefore should not be consumed . The blood of a slaughtered animal was thus drained before the meat was used and the blood itself was not used as a cooking liquid or drink.
There are no biblical lists containing forbidden plants, so it can be assumed any plant or fruit was permissible as food, and their use limited only by taste or toxicity (for example) and the fulfillment of religious requirements such as the tithe.
Cuisine
Cuisine is a characteristic style of cooking practices and traditions, often associated with a specific culture. Cuisines are often named after the geographic areas or regions that they originate from...
eaten by the ancient Israelites during a period of over a thousand years, from the beginning of the Israelite presence
History of ancient Israel and Judah
Israel and Judah were related Iron Age kingdoms of ancient Palestine. The earliest known reference to the name Israel in archaeological records is in the Merneptah stele, an Egyptian record of c. 1209 BCE. By the 9th century BCE the Kingdom of Israel had emerged as an important local power before...
in the Land of Israel
Land of Israel
The Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
at the beginning of the Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
until the Roman period
Judaea (Roman province)
Judaea or Iudaea are terms used by historians to refer to the Roman province that extended over parts of the former regions of the Hasmonean and Herodian kingdoms of Israel...
. The dietary staples were bread
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
, wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
and olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
, but also included, in varying degrees, legumes, fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
s and vegetable
Vegetable
The noun vegetable usually means an edible plant or part of a plant other than a sweet fruit or seed. This typically means the leaf, stem, or root of a plant....
s, dairy product
Dairy product
Dairy products are generally defined as foods produced from cow's or domestic buffalo's milk. They are usually high-energy-yielding food products. A production plant for such processing is called a dairy or a dairy factory. Raw milk for processing comes mainly from cows, and, to a lesser extent,...
s, fish
Fish (food)
Fish is a food consumed by many species, including humans. The word "fish" refers to both the animal and to the food prepared from it. Fish has been an important source of protein for humans throughout recorded history.-Terminology:...
and meat
Meat
Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...
. Religious beliefs, which prohibited the consumption of certain foods, shaped the Israelite diet. There was considerable continuity in the main components of the diet over time, despite the introduction of new foodstuffs at various stages and the food of ancient Israel was similar to that of other ancient Mediterranean
Mediterranean Basin
In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers, which supports characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation...
diets.
Sources
Information about the food of the ancient Israelites is based on written sources, archaeological recordsArchaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
and comparative evidence from the wider region of the ancient Levant
History of the Levant
The Levant is a geographical term that refers to a large area in Southwest Asia, south of the Taurus Mountains, bounded by the Mediterranean Sea in the west, the Arabian Desert in the south, and the Zagros Mountains in the east. It stretches 400 miles north to south from the Taurus Mountains to the...
:
The primary written source for the period is the Hebrew Bible
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible is a term used by biblical scholars outside of Judaism to refer to the Tanakh , a canonical collection of Jewish texts, and the common textual antecedent of the several canonical editions of the Christian Old Testament...
, the largest collection of written documents surviving from ancient Israel. Other texts, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
, Apocryphal works
Apocrypha
The term apocrypha is used with various meanings, including "hidden", "esoteric", "spurious", "of questionable authenticity", ancient Chinese "revealed texts and objects" and "Christian texts that are not canonical"....
, the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
, the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
and the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
also provide information. Epigraphic
Epigraphy
Epigraphy Epigraphy Epigraphy (from the , literally "on-writing", is the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing; that is, the science of identifying the graphemes and of classifying their use as to cultural context and date, elucidating their meaning and assessing what conclusions can be...
sources include ostraca from Samaria
Ostraca House
Ostraca of Samaria are Sixty-four legible ostraca which were found in Samaria. These are written in early Hebrew characters, which very closely resemble those of the Siloam Inscription, but show a slight development of the cursive script. These ostraca were found in the treasury of the palace of...
and Arad
Tel Arad
Tel Arad or 'old' Arad is located west of the Dead Sea, about 10 km west of modern Arad in an area surrounded by mountain ridges which is known as the Arad Plain. The site is divided into a lower city and an upper hill which holds the only ever discovered 'House of Yahweh' in the land of...
.
The Bible provides names of plants and animals that were used for food, such as the lists of permitted and forbidden animals
Kosher animals
Kosher animals are those that comply with regulations for Kosher food in Jewish religion. These food regulations form the main aspect of kashrut, and ultimately derive from various passages in the Torah...
(for example, and ), and the lists of foods brought to the king’s
Kings of Israel and Judah family tree
The following is a family tree of the kings of the United Kingdom of Israel as well as those of its two successor states, the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah....
table (for example) or the foods that the Israelites are said to have longed for after leaving Egypt . These lists indicate the potential foods that were available, but not necessarily how regularly the food was eaten or how significant it was in the cuisine, which needs to be derived from other sources.
Archaeological remains include the items used for the production of food, such as wine
Wine press
A wine press is a device used to extract juice from crushed grapes during wine making. There are a number of different styles of presses that are used by wine makers but their overall functionality is the same. Each style of press exerts controlled pressure in order to free the juice from the fruit...
or olive presses; stone and metal implements used in the preparation of food; and amphora
Amphora
An amphora is a type of vase-shaped, usually ceramic container with two handles and a long neck narrower than the body...
e, jars, storerooms and grain pits used for storage. Animal bones provide evidence of meat consumption, the types of animals eaten, and whether they were kept for milk production or other uses, while paleobotanical
Paleobotany
Paleobotany, also spelled as palaeobotany , is the branch of paleontology or paleobiology dealing with the recovery and identification of plant remains from geological contexts, and their use for the biological reconstruction of past environments , and both the evolutionary history of plants, with a...
remains, such as seeds or other carbonized
Carbonization
Carbonization or carbonisation is the term for the conversion of an organic substance into carbon or a carbon-containing residue through pyrolysis or destructive distillation. It is often used in organic chemistry with reference to the generation of coal gas and coal tar from raw coal...
or desiccated plant remains provide information about plant foods.
Using both written and archaeological data, some comparisons can be drawn between the food of ancient Israel and its neighbors. Although there is much information about the foods of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
, the inferences that can be made are limited due to differences in topography
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
and climate
Climate
Climate encompasses the statistics of temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and other meteorological elemental measurements in a given region over long periods...
; Israelite agriculture also depended on rainfall rather than the river-based irrigation of these two civilizations, resulting in the preference for different crops. Ugarit
Ugarit
Ugarit was an ancient port city in the eastern Mediterranean at the Ras Shamra headland near Latakia, Syria. It is located near Minet el-Beida in northern Syria. It is some seven miles north of Laodicea ad Mare and approximately fifty miles east of Cyprus...
and Phoenicia
Phoenicia
Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
were closer neighbors of ancient Israel, and shared a topography and climate similar to that of ancient Israel. Thus, conclusions about the food and drink in ancient Israel have been made with some confidence from this evidence.
History
Significant milestones in the availability and development food production characteristic of Israelite cuisine occurred well before the Israelite period. On the other hand, vestiges of the cuisine and the practices associated with it continue to resonate in later Jewish cuisineJewish cuisine
Jewish Cuisine is a collection of the different cooking traditions of the Jewish people worldwide. It is a diverse cuisine that has evolved over many centuries, shaped by Jewish dietary laws and Jewish Festival and Sabbath traditions...
and traditions that developed in Israel and Babylonia
Babylonia
Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia , with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as a major power when Hammurabi Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as...
during the Talmudic period (200 CE – 500 CE), and may still be discerned in the various culinary styles that have developed among Jewish communities
Jewish diaspora
The Jewish diaspora is the English term used to describe the Galut גלות , or 'exile', of the Jews from the region of the Kingdom of Judah and Roman Iudaea and later emigration from wider Eretz Israel....
since then.
Pre-Israelite
Wild species of barleyBarley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
and emmer
Emmer
Emmer wheat , also known as farro especially in Italy, is a low yielding, awned wheat. It was one of the first crops domesticated in the Near East...
wheat were domesticated and cultivated in the Jordan River Valley as early as the 9th century BCE. Archaeologists have found the carbonized seeds of two kinds of primitive wheat, einkorn and emmer, and two-rowed barley, in the earliest levels of digs at Jericho
Jericho
Jericho ; is a city located near the Jordan River in the West Bank of the Palestinian territories. It is the capital of the Jericho Governorate and has a population of more than 20,000. Situated well below sea level on an east-west route north of the Dead Sea, Jericho is the lowest permanently...
, one of the first inhabited cities in the world.
During the Pottery Neolithic period
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
(6000 – 4300 BCE), the development of pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
enabled people to produce portable containers for the transportation and storage of food, and an economy based on agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and herding
Herding
Herding is the act of bringing individual animals together into a group , maintaining the group and moving the group from place to place—or any combination of those. While the layperson uses the term "herding", most individuals involved in the process term it mustering, "working stock" or...
developed. Archaeological evidence indicates that figs, lentils and broad beans were being cultivated from Neolithic times.
During the Chalcolithic period (4300 – 3300 BCE), large pottery containers indicative of settled peoples, appear in the archaeological record. Date palm
Date Palm
The date palm is a palm in the genus Phoenix, cultivated for its edible sweet fruit. Although its place of origin is unknown because of long cultivation, it probably originated from lands around the Persian Gulf. It is a medium-sized plant, 15–25 m tall, growing singly or forming a clump with...
cultivation began in the Jordan River Valley, and the earliest date pits have been discovered at Ein Gedi
Ein Gedi
Ein Gedi is an oasis in Israel, located west of the Dead Sea, near Masada and the caves of Qumran.-Etymology:The name En-gedi is composed of two Hebrew words: ein means spring and gdi means goat-kid. En Gedi thus means "Kid spring."...
by the Dead Sea
Dead Sea
The Dead Sea , also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are below sea level, the lowest elevation on the Earth's surface. The Dead Sea is deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the world...
. In the Golan
Golan
Golan was a biblical city in Land of Israel. It was in the territory of Manasseh in the Bashan.Golan was the most northerly of the three cities of refuge east of the Jordan River . Manasseh gave this city to the Gershonite Levites .According to the Bible, the Israelites conquered Golan from the...
, olives trees were grown and olive oil was produced there.
Chickpea
Chickpea
The chickpea is a legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae...
cultivation dates back to the Bronze Age (3300 – 1200 BCE)
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
and grapes and olives became important crops in the hill country. Wine and oil were traded for wheat with the cities on the coastal plain, and for meat and skins with semi-nomadic herders. Wine and carobs were also exported to Egypt during this period. At Arad
Tel Arad
Tel Arad or 'old' Arad is located west of the Dead Sea, about 10 km west of modern Arad in an area surrounded by mountain ridges which is known as the Arad Plain. The site is divided into a lower city and an upper hill which holds the only ever discovered 'House of Yahweh' in the land of...
in the northern Negev, the remains of wheat, barley and legumes have been found, along with stone lined storage pits for grain from this period. Pottery was imported from Cyprus
Ancient history of Cyprus
The ancient history of Cyprus, also known as Classical Antiquity, dates from the 8th century BC to the Middle Ages. The earliest written records relating to Cyprus date to the Middle Bronze Age , see Alasiya.-Assyrian Period:...
and Mycenae
Mycenae
Mycenae is an archaeological site in Greece, located about 90 km south-west of Athens, in the north-eastern Peloponnese. Argos is 11 km to the south; Corinth, 48 km to the north...
in Greece
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
for the first time, probably for use as good quality tableware. After the Bronze Age collapse
Bronze Age collapse
The Bronze Age collapse is a transition in southwestern Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age that some historians believe was violent, sudden and culturally disruptive...
of urban culture, there was an increase in herding and the disappearance of smaller agricultural communities.
Israelite period
The Israelite presence emerged during the Early Iron Age (1200–1000 BCE), at first in the central hill country, TransjordanTransjordan (Bible)
The Transjordan is used to describe an area of land in the Southern Levant lying east of the Jordan River that is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. The area is said to form part of an ill-defined area known as the land of Israel...
and the northern Negev
Negev
The Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
, and later in the Galilee
Galilee
Galilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
, while the Philistines and other Sea Peoples arrived at roughly the same time and settled in the coastal regions. Pastoralism
Pastoralism
Pastoralism or pastoral farming is the branch of agriculture concerned with the raising of livestock. It is animal husbandry: the care, tending and use of animals such as camels, goats, cattle, yaks, llamas, and sheep. It may have a mobile aspect, moving the herds in search of fresh pasture and...
and animal husbandry
Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock.- History :Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years, since the first domestication of animals....
remained important, and walled open spaces in villages that probably served as paddocks have been discovered. The construction of terraces in the hills, and of additional plastered cisterns for water storage, enabled more cultivation than before. Storage pits and silos were dug into the ground to hold grain. Under the united Israelite monarchy, central store cities were built, and greater areas of the northern Negev came under cultivation. The Gezer agricultural calendar
Gezer calendar
The Gezer calendar is a tablet of soft limestone inscription, dating to the 10th century BCE. Scholars are divided as to whether the script and language are Phoenician or paleo-Hebrew, which were linguistically very similar in this period....
detailing the crops that were raised, dates from this period.
After the division of the Israelite kingdom, Jerusalem and a number of other cities expanded, supported by the surrounding villages and farms. These were called “daughters of” the major towns in the Hebrew Bible (for example, and ). Large food storage facilities and granaries were built, such as the city of Hazor. During the later Iron Age (Iron Age II) period, roughly the same period as the Israelite and Judean monarchies, olive oil and wine were produced on a large scale for commerce and export, as well as for local consumption.
The ancient Israelites depended on bread, wine and oil as the basic dietary staples and this trio is often mentioned in the Bible (for example, and ) and in other texts, such as the Samaria
Ostraca House
Ostraca of Samaria are Sixty-four legible ostraca which were found in Samaria. These are written in early Hebrew characters, which very closely resemble those of the Siloam Inscription, but show a slight development of the cursive script. These ostraca were found in the treasury of the palace of...
and Arad
Tel Arad
Tel Arad or 'old' Arad is located west of the Dead Sea, about 10 km west of modern Arad in an area surrounded by mountain ridges which is known as the Arad Plain. The site is divided into a lower city and an upper hill which holds the only ever discovered 'House of Yahweh' in the land of...
ostraca. Written and archaeological evidence indicate that the diet also included other products from plants, trees and animals. Seven basic agricultural products, called the Seven Species
Seven Species
The Seven Species are seven agricultural products - two grains and five fruits - that are listed in the Hebrew Bible as being special products of the Land of Israel....
, are listed in the Bible: wheat, barley, figs, grapes, olives, pomegranates, and dates . The Bible also often describes the land of Israel as a land "flowing with milk and honey" (for example).
The cuisine maintained many consistent traits based on the main products available from the early Israelite period until the Roman period
Judaea (Roman province)
Judaea or Iudaea are terms used by historians to refer to the Roman province that extended over parts of the former regions of the Hasmonean and Herodian kingdoms of Israel...
, even though new foods became available during this extended time. For example, rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
was introduced during the Persian era
Yehud Medinata
Yehud Medinata or simply Yehud, was an Achaeminid autonomous province covering Judea and parts of Samaria, located south to Eber-Nari...
; during the Hellenistic period, as trade with the Nabateans increased, more spices became available, at least for those who could afford them, and more Mediterranean fish were imported into the cities; and during the Roman period, sugar cane was introduced.
Post-Second Temple era
The symbolic food of the ancient Israelites continued to be important among JewsJews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
after the destruction of the Second Temple
Second Temple
The Jewish Second Temple was an important shrine which stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem between 516 BCE and 70 CE. It replaced the First Temple which was destroyed in 586 BCE, when the Jewish nation was exiled to Babylon...
in 70 CE or AD
70
Year 70 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Vespasianus...
and the beginning of the Jewish Diaspora
Jewish diaspora
The Jewish diaspora is the English term used to describe the Galut גלות , or 'exile', of the Jews from the region of the Kingdom of Judah and Roman Iudaea and later emigration from wider Eretz Israel....
. Bread, wine, and olive oil were seen as direct links to the three main crops of ancient Israel — wheat, grapes, and olives. In the Bible, this trio is described as representing the divine
Divinity
Divinity and divine are broadly applied but loosely defined terms, used variously within different faiths and belief systems — and even by different individuals within a given faith — to refer to some transcendent or transcendental power or deity, or its attributes or manifestations in...
response to human needs and particularly the need for the seasonal rains vital for the successful cultivation of these three crops. . The significance of wine, bread and oil is indicated by their incorporation into Jewish religious
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
ritual
Ritual
A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value. It may be prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. The term usually excludes actions which are arbitrarily chosen by the performers....
, with the blessings
Berakhah
In Judaism, a berakhah, bracha, brokhe is a blessing, usually recited at a specific moment during a ceremony or other activity. The function of a berakhah is to acknowledge God as the source of all blessing...
over wine and bread for Sabbath
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
and holiday meals and at religious ceremonies such as weddings
Jewish wedding
A Jewish wedding is a wedding ceremony that follows Jewish law and traditions.While wedding ceremonies vary, common features of a Jewish wedding include a ketuba signed by two witnesses, a wedding canopy , a ring owned by the groom that is given to the bride under the canopy, and the breaking of a...
, and the lighting of Sabbath and festival lights with olive oil.
Characteristics
The daily diet of the ordinary ancient Israelite was mainly one of bread, cooked grains and legumes. Bread was eaten with every meal. Vegetables played a smaller, but significant role in the diet. The Israelites drank goat and sheep’s milkSheep milk
Sheep's milk is the milk of domestic sheep. Though not widely drunk in any modern culture, sheep's milk is commonly used to make cultured dairy products. Well-known cheeses made from sheep milk include the Feta of Greece, Roquefort of France, Manchego from Spain, the Pecorino Romano , the Pecorino...
when it was available in the spring and summer, and ate butter and cheese. Figs and grapes were the fruits most commonly eaten, while dates, pomegranates and other fruits and nuts were eaten more occasionally. Wine was the most popular beverage and sometimes other fermented beverages were produced. Olives were used primarily for their oil. Meat, usually goat and mutton, was eaten rarely and was reserved for special occasions such as celebrations, festival meals or sacrificial feasts. Game
Game (food)
Game is any animal hunted for food or not normally domesticated. Game animals are also hunted for sport.The type and range of animals hunted for food varies in different parts of the world. This will be influenced by climate, animal diversity, local taste and locally accepted view about what can or...
, birds, eggs and fish were also eaten, depending on availability.
Most food was eaten fresh and in season. Fruits and vegetables had to be eaten as they ripened and before they spoiled. People had to contend with periodic episodes of hunger and famine; producing enough food required hard and well-timed labor, and the climatic conditions resulted in unpredictable harvests and the need to store as much food as possible. Thus, grapes were made into raisins and wine; olives were made into oil; figs, beans and lentils were dried; and grains were stored for use throughout the year. The diet was essentially vegetarian. A typical daily meal is illustrated by the biblical description of the rations that Abigail
Abigail
Abigail was the wife of Nabal; she became a wife of David after Nabal's death .In the passage, Nabal demonstrates ingratitude towards David, and Abigail attempts to placate David in order to stop him taking revenge...
brought to David’s
David
David was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...
group: bread, wine, roasted grain, raisins and fig cakes .
Grains and bread
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...
products comprised the majority of the food consumed by the ancient Israelites. The staple food was bread, and it was such a vital part of each meal that the Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
word for bread, lehem, also referred to food in general. The supreme importance of bread to the ancient Israelites is also demonstrated by the fact that Biblical Hebrew has at least a dozen words for bread, and bread features in numerous Hebrew proverb
Proverb
A proverb is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim...
s (for example, ). Bread was eaten at just about every meal, and is estimated to have provided from 50 to 70 percent of an ordinary person’s daily calories
Food energy
Food energy is the amount of energy obtained from food that is available through cellular respiration.Food energy is expressed in food calories or kilojoules...
. The bread eaten until the end of the Israelite monarchy was mainly made from barley flour; during the Second Temple period, bread from wheat flour become predominant.
Porridge
Porridge
Porridge is a dish made by boiling oats or other cereal meals in water, milk, or both. It is usually served hot in a bowl or dish...
and gruel
Gruel
Gruel is a food preparation consisting of some type of cereal—oat, wheat or rye flour, or rice—boiled in water or milk. It is a thinner version of porridge that may be more often drunk than eaten and need not even be cooked...
were made from ground grain, water, salt and butter. This mixture also formed the basis for cakes, to which oil and fruits were sometimes added before baking.
The Israelites cultivated both wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
and barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
. These two grains are mentioned first in the biblical list of the Seven Species of the land of Israel and their importance as food is also seen in the celebration of the barley harvest at the festival of Shavuot
Shavuot
The festival of is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan ....
and of the wheat harvest at the festival of Sukkot
Sukkot
Sukkot is a Biblical holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei . It is one of the three biblically mandated festivals Shalosh regalim on which Hebrews were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.The holiday lasts seven days...
.
Rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
was introduced during the early Second Temple period through contact with the Persians. By the Roman period, rice had become an important export, and the Jerusalem Talmud
Jerusalem Talmud
The Jerusalem Talmud, talmud meaning "instruction", "learning", , is a collection of Rabbinic notes on the 2nd-century Mishnah which was compiled in the Land of Israel during the 4th-5th century. The voluminous text is also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud de-Eretz Yisrael...
states about rice that “there is none like it outside Israel,” and that notable rabbis served rice at the Passover seder
Passover Seder
The Passover Seder is a Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted on the evenings of the 14th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, and on the 15th by traditionally observant Jews living outside Israel. This corresponds to late March or April in...
.
Barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
(hordeum vulgare) was the most important grain during the biblical period, and this was recognized ritually on the second day of Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
in the Omer offering, consisting of barley flour from the newly ripened crop. Furthermore, its significance to Israelite society, not only as a source of food, is illustrated by the biblical method for measuring a field by the amount of barley (rather than of wheat) with which it could be sown.
Barley was initially predominant because it matured earlier and tolerated harsher conditions than wheat, growing in areas with less rainfall and poorer soils, such as the northern Negev and the hill country. It had a high yield potential and was resistant to insect infestation. It could be sown without plowing, and could therefore be grown on small plots of land that oxen or even donkeys could not reach, and it did not need artificial irrigation. It ripened a month earlier than wheat and was thus available to replenish supplies used up during the winter sooner than wheat, and also provide some food security
Food security
Food security refers to the availability of food and one's access to it. A household is considered food-secure when its occupants do not live in hunger or fear of starvation. According to the World Resources Institute, global per capita food production has been increasing substantially for the past...
if the more vulnerable wheat crop was poor or failed.
Two varieties of barley were cultivated: two rowed and sixed rowed. Two rowed barley was the older, hulled form; six rowed barley was unhulled and easier to thresh, and since the kernels remained intact, store for longer periods. Hulled barley was thus the prevalent type during the Iron Age, but gruels made from it must have had a gritty taste due to the barley’s tough outer layers.
Bread was primarily made from barley flour during the Iron Age , as barley was more widely and easily grown, and was thus more available, cheaper, and could be made into bread without a leavening agent
Leavening agent
A leavening agent is any one of a number of substances used in doughs and batters that cause a foaming action which lightens and softens the finished product...
even though wheat flour was regarded as superior. It was presumably made from dough that was a simple mixture of barley flour and water, divided into small pieces, formed by hand into round shapes and then baked.
However, barley declined as the staple from the biblical period, to a poverty food by the end of the Second Temple period, and by the Talmudic era it was regarded mostly as animal fodder
Fodder
Fodder or animal feed is any agricultural foodstuff used specifically to feed domesticated livestock such as cattle, goats, sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. Most animal feed is from plants but some is of animal origin...
.
Wheat
EmmerEmmer
Emmer wheat , also known as farro especially in Italy, is a low yielding, awned wheat. It was one of the first crops domesticated in the Near East...
wheat (triticum dicoccum) was initially the most widespread variety of wheat, as it grew well in the warm climate and was resistant to fungal rot
Common root rot (wheat)
Common root rot is a disease of wheat caused by one or more fungi. Cochliobolus sativus , Fusarium culmorum and F. graminearum are the most common pathogens responsible for common root rot.-Symptoms:...
. It was high yielding, with large grains and relatively high amounts of gluten
Gluten
Gluten is a protein composite found in foods processed from wheat and related grain species, including barley and rye...
, and bread made from emmer wheat flour was thus fairly light in texture. However, emmer required time-consuming pounding or roasting to remove its husk
Husk
Husk in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. It often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective outer covering of a seed, fruit or vegetable...
, and during the Iron Age, durum
Durum
Durum wheat or macaroni wheat is the only tetraploid species of wheat of commercial importance that is widely cultivated today...
wheat (triticum durum), a descendent of emmer, gradually replaced emmer and became the favored grain for making fine flour. Durum grew well in the rich soil of the larger valleys of the central and northern areas of the country, where rainfall exceeded 225 millimeters per year, was higher yielding than emmer, and its grains released more easily from the chaff
Chaff
Chaff is the dry, scaly protective casings of the seeds of cereal grain, or similar fine, dry, scaly plant material such as scaly parts of flowers, or finely chopped straw...
. It could therefore be separated from the husk without roasting or pounding first, thus reducing the work required for threshing, and also leaving most of the grains whole, which was better for longer storage.
However, durum is a hard grain and was difficult to grind with the early hand-held grindstones
Millstone
Millstones or mill stones are used in windmills and watermills, including tide mills, for grinding wheat or other grains.The type of stone most suitable for making millstones is a siliceous rock called burrstone , an open-textured, porous but tough, fine-grained sandstone, or a silicified,...
. The flour also had to be sifted repeatedly to obtain fine flour (such as the solet required in the Temple offerings). Thus, durum was primarily used for porridges, or parboiled and dried, or roasted and boiled, and barley flour continued to be used for making bread, until another hybrid of emmer, common or “bread” wheat
Common wheat
Common wheat, Triticum aestivum, is a cultivated wheat species.-Nomenclature and taxonomy of the variety and its cultivars:-Evolution:...
(triticum aestivum) replaced barley as the primary grain after the Greek conquest of the land of Israel and, together with durum wheat, became widespread during the Greco-Roman period, constituting the bulk of the grain crop by the end of the Second Temple period. The introduction of common wheat, which contained more starch
Starch
Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...
and had a higher level of gluten, spread the use of wheat for bread-making and led to the production of loaves that were more lightly textured than barley and durum wheat breads.
Preparation of grains
A series of developments in technology for threshingThreshing
Threshing is the process of loosening the edible part of cereal grain from the scaly, inedible chaff that surrounds it. It is the step in grain preparation after harvesting and before winnowing, which separates the loosened chaff from the grain...
, milling and baking
Baking
Baking is the technique of prolonged cooking of food by dry heat acting by convection, and not by radiation, normally in an oven, but also in hot ashes, or on hot stones. It is primarily used for the preparation of bread, cakes, pastries and pies, tarts, quiches, cookies and crackers. Such items...
improved both the quantity and the quality of the grain and the means for preparation that were available, from the beginning of the Iron Age until the end of the Second Temple period:
In the early Iron Age, grain was threshed to remove it from the stalks by beating it with sticks or by oxen treading on it. This usually broke most of the grain kernels
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
, which limited their storage time because broken kernels spoil more quickly than unbroken ones. The development of the threshing-board
Threshing-board
A threshing board is an obsolete farm implement used to separate cereals from their straw; that is, to thresh. It is a thick board, made with a variety of slats, with a shape between rectangular and trapezoidal, with the frontal part somewhat narrower and curved upward and whose bottom is covered...
, which was pulled over the stalks by oxen, left most of the grain kernels intact and enhanced their storage time. Numerous threshing floor
Threshing floor
A threshing floor is a specially flattened surface, usually circular and paved, where a farmer would thresh the grain harvest and then winnow it, before the advent of threshing machines from the nineteenth century onwards. The threshing floor was either owned by the entire village or by a single...
s and threshing boards have been discovered at archaeological sites of ancient Israel
Archaeology of Israel
The archaeology of Israel is the study of the archaeology of Israel, stretching from prehistory through three millennia of documented history. The ancient Land of Israel was a geographical bridge between the political and cultural centers of Mesopotamia and Egypt...
.
Once separated from the stalks, the grain was used in a number of ways: Most simply, unripe kernels of grain were eaten fresh, particularly in the spring, before ripe grain was available, and both unripe and ripe grain was roasted over fire for immediate use. Ripe grains of wheat were also parboiled and dried, like modern bulgur
Bulgur
Bulgur is a cereal food made from several different wheat species, most often from durum wheat. In the United States it is most often made from white wheat. Its use is most common in Middle Eastern cuisine, Iran, Turkey, Greece, Armenia and Bulgaria...
, and then prepared as porridge. Whole or cracked grain was also used to make gruel and in stews. Most frequently, grains were ground into flour to prepare bread.
Bread making
BreadBread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
was the main source of nourishment in biblical times and making bread was a daily activity:
Bread making began with the milling
Mill (grinding)
A grinding mill is a unit operation designed to break a solid material into smaller pieces. There are many different types of grinding mills and many types of materials processed in them. Historically mills were powered by hand , working animal , wind or water...
of the grain. It was a difficult and time-consuming task, performed by women. Each household stored its own grain, and it is estimated that it required at least three hours of daily effort to produce enough flour to make sufficient bread for a family of five. The earliest milling was performed with a pestle and mortar, or a stone quern
Quern-stone
Quern-stones are stone tools for hand grinding a wide variety of materials. They were used in pairs. The lower, stationary, stone is called a quern, whilst the upper, mobile, stone is called a handstone...
consisting of a large lower stone that held the grain and a smooth upper stone that was moved back and forth over the grains . This often left small pieces of grit in the flour. The use of the millstone became more widespread during the Iron Age, resulting in greater speed and increased production of flour. Smaller versions for household use, the rotary or beehive quern, appeared during the early Persian period.
After the grain was milled into flour, it was mixed with water and kneaded in a large trough. For dough made with wheat flour, starter, called seor, was added. The starter was prepared by reserving a small portion of dough from a previous batch to absorb the yeasts in the air and thus help leaven the new dough. Seor thus gave the bread a sourdough
Sourdough
Sourdough is a dough containing a Lactobacillus culture, usually in symbiotic combination with yeasts. It is one of two principal means of biological leavening in bread baking, along with the use of cultivated forms of yeast . It is of particular importance in baking rye-based breads, where yeast...
flavor.
Once prepared, the dough could be baked in various ways:
Initially, the dough was placed directly on the heated stones of a cooking fire or in a griddle
Griddle
A griddle is a cooking device consisting of a broad flat surface that can be heated using a variety of means, and is used in both residential and commercial applications for a variety of cooking operations. Most commonly, the griddle consists of a flat metal plate, but in the non-industrialized...
or pan made of clay or iron . In the time of the First Temple, two types of oven were used for baking bread: the jar oven
Tabun oven
A tabun oven, or simply, tabun is a clay oven, shaped like a truncated cone, with an opening at the bottom from which to stoke the fire. Built and used in pre-biblical and biblical times as the family, neighbourhood, or village oven, tabun ovens continue to be built and used in parts of the Middle...
and the pit-oven
Earth oven
An earth oven or cooking pit is one of the most simple and long-used cooking structures . At its simplest, an earth oven is simply a pit in the ground used to trap heat and bake, smoke, or steam food...
. The jar-oven was a large pottery container, narrowing into an opening toward the top; fuel was burned on the inside to heat it and the dough was pressed against the outside to bake. The pit-oven was a clay-lined excavation in the ground in which the fuel was burned and then pushed aside, and the loaves were baked on the heated surface. People also began placing a convex dome, initially earthenware and later metal, over the pit-oven and cooking the flatbreads on the dome instead of on the ash-covered surface; this type of oven is probably what was meant by the biblical machabat, often translated as “griddle”.
The Persians introduced a clay oven called a tanur (similar to the Indian tandoor
Tandoor
A tandoor is a cylindrical clay oven used in cooking and baking. The tandoor is used for cooking in Azerbaijan, India, Turkey, Iran, Armenia, Georgia, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, the Balkans, the Middle East, and Central Asia, as well as Burma and Bangladesh.The heat for a tandoor was...
), which had an opening at the bottom for the fire, and through which the bread was placed to be baked on the inner wall of the upper chamber from the heat of the oven and ashes after the flames had died down. This continued to be the way in which Yemenite Jews
Yemenite Jews
Yemenite Jews are those Jews who live, or whose recent ancestors lived, in Yemen . Between June 1949 and September 1950, the overwhelming majority of Yemen's Jewish population was transported to Israel in Operation Magic Carpet...
baked bread until modern times. The remains of clay ovens, and fragments of bread trays have been found in several archaeological excavations.
All these methods produced only quite thin loaves and the custom was thus to break bread
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
rather than cut it. The bread was soft and pliable and used for dipping and sopping up gravies and juices.
The Romans introduced an oven called a "furn" ("purni" in Talmudic Aramaic), a large, wood-burning, stone-lined oven with a bottom on which the dough or baking sheet was placed. This provided a major advance in bread and pastry baking, and made the baking of much thicker loaves possible.
A variety of breads was produced. Probably most common were unleavened flat loaves
Flatbread
A flatbread is a simple bread made with flour, water, and salt and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened: made without yeast or sourdough culture: although some flatbread is made with yeast, such as pita bread....
called ugah or kikkar. Another type was a thin wafer, known as a rakik. A thicker loaf, known as hallah was made with the best quality flour, usually for ritual purposes.
Bread was sometimes enriched by the addition of flour from legumes . The Mishna (Hallah
Hallah (Talmud)
Hallah is the ninth tractate of Seder Zeraim of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. This "Hallah" was separated from bread dough made from the five species of grain and put aside for a Kohen in Biblical times and the time of the Jewish Temple...
2:2) mentions bread dough made with fruit juice instead of water. The sugar in the juice
Fructose
Fructose, or fruit sugar, is a simple monosaccharide found in many plants. It is one of the three dietary monosaccharides, along with glucose and galactose, that are absorbed directly into the bloodstream during digestion. Fructose was discovered by French chemist Augustin-Pierre Dubrunfaut in 1847...
, interacting with the flour and water, provided some leavening and sweetened the bread. The Israelites also sometimes added fennel
Fennel
Fennel is a plant species in the genus Foeniculum . It is a member of the family Apiaceae . It is a hardy, perennial, umbelliferous herb, with yellow flowers and feathery leaves...
and cumin
Cumin
Cumin is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, native from the east Mediterranean to India. Its seeds are used in the cuisines of many different cultures, in both whole and ground form.-Etymology:...
to bread dough for flavor, and dipped their bread in vinegar, olive or sesame oil for extra flavor.
Legumes
After grain, legumes such as lentilLentil
The lentil is an edible pulse. It is a bushy annual plant of the legume family, grown for its lens-shaped seeds...
s, broad or fava beans
Vicia faba
This article refers to the Broad Bean plant. For Broadbean the company, see Broadbean, Inc.Vicia faba, the Broad Bean, Fava Bean, Field Bean, Bell Bean or Tic Bean, is a species of bean native to north Africa and southwest Asia, and extensively cultivated elsewhere. A variety is provisionally...
, chickpea
Chickpea
The chickpea is a legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae...
s and pea
Pea
A pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the pod fruit Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Peapods are botanically a fruit, since they contain seeds developed from the ovary of a flower. However, peas are considered to be a vegetable in cooking...
s were the main element in the diet and were the main source of protein, since meat was rarely eaten.
Broad beans, chickpeas and lentils are the only legumes mentioned in the Bible but lentils, broad beans, chickpeas, fenugreek
Fenugreek
Fenugreek is a plant in the family Fabaceae. Fenugreek is used both as a herb and as a spice . The leaves and sprouts are also eaten as vegetables...
, field peas and bitter vetch have been found at Iron Age Israelite sites. By the Roman period, legumes are mentioned frequently in other texts. They are cited as one of the elements of the “wife’s food basket” in the Mishna (Ketubot 5:8), by which it is estimated that legumes supplied 17% of daily calories at that time.
Lentils were the most important of the legumes and were used to make pottage
Pottage
Pottage is a thick soup or stew made by boiling vegetables, grains, and, if available, meat or fish.It was a staple food of all people living in Great Britain from neolithic times on into the Middle Ages...
s and soups, as well as cakes made from ground roasted lentils pressed and fried in oil and called ashishim, such as those that King David is described as distributing to the people when the Ark of the Covenant
Ark of the Covenant
The Ark of the Covenant , also known as the Ark of the Testimony, is a chest described in Book of Exodus as solely containing the Tablets of Stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed...
was brought to Jerusalem.
Stews made of lentils or beans were common and they were cooked with onion, garlic and leeks for flavor. Fresh legumes were also roasted, or dried and stored for extended periods. They were then cooked in a soup or a stew. The Bible mentions roasted legumes , and relates how Jacob
Jacob
Jacob "heel" or "leg-puller"), also later known as Israel , as described in the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, the New Testament and the Qur'an was the third patriarch of the Hebrew people with whom God made a covenant, and ancestor of the tribes of Israel, which were named after his descendants.In the...
prepared bread and a pottage of lentils for Esau
Esau
Esau , in the Hebrew Bible, is the oldest son of Isaac. He is mentioned in the Book of Genesis, and by the minor prophets, Obadiah and Malachi. The New Testament later references him in the Book of Romans and the Book of Hebrews....
.
Vegetables
Vegetables are not found often in the archaeological record and it is difficult to determine the role that they played, because plant foods were often eaten raw or were simply boiled, without requiring special equipment for preparation, and thus barely leaving any trace other than the type of food itself. Vegetables also are not mentioned often in the written record, and when the Bible does mention them, the attitude is mixed: sometimes they are regarded as a delicacy, but more often, they were held in low esteem (for example, . Vegetables were perhaps a more important food at the extremes in society: the wealthy who could afford to dedicate land and resources to grow them, and the poor who depended on gathering them in the wild to supplement their meager supplies. More people may have gathered wild plants during famine conditions.Vegetables that were commonly eaten included squash, leek
Leek
The leek, Allium ampeloprasum var. porrum , also sometimes known as Allium porrum, is a vegetable which belongs, along with the onion and garlic, to family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Allioideae...
s, garlic
Garlic
Allium sativum, commonly known as garlic, is a species in the onion genus, Allium. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, and rakkyo. Dating back over 6,000 years, garlic is native to central Asia, and has long been a staple in the Mediterranean region, as well as a frequent...
and onion
Onion
The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...
s, black radish
Radish
The radish is an edible root vegetable of the Brassicaceae family that was domesticated in Europe, in pre-Roman times. They are grown and consumed throughout the world. Radishes have numerous varieties, varying in size, color and duration of required cultivation time...
es, net or muskmelon
Muskmelon
Muskmelon is a species of melon that has been developed into many cultivated varieties. These include smooth skinned varieties such as honeydew, crenshaw and casaba, and different netted cultivars...
s (sometimes misidentified as the cucumber
Cucumber
The cucumber is a widely cultivated plant in the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, which includes squash, and in the same genus as the muskmelon. The plant is a creeping vine which bears cylindrical edible fruit when ripe. There are three main varieties of cucumber: "slicing", "pickling", and...
) and watermelon
Watermelon
Watermelon is a vine-like flowering plant originally from southern Africa. Its fruit, which is also called watermelon, is a special kind referred to by botanists as a pepo, a berry which has a thick rind and fleshy center...
s. Other vegetables played a minor role in the diet of the ancient Israelites. Field greens and root plants were generally not cultivated and were gathered seasonally when they grew in the wild. Leafy plants included dandelion greens
Taraxacum
Taraxacum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. They are native to Eurasia and North America, and two species, T. officinale and T. erythrospermum, are found as weeds worldwide. Both species are edible in their entirety...
and the young leaves of the orach
Atriplex
Atriplex is a plant genus of 100-200 species, known by the common names of saltbush and orache . The genus is quite variable and widely distributed. It includes many desert and seashore plants and halophytes, as well as plants of moist environments...
plant.
Leeks, onions and garlic were eaten both cooked in stews, and uncooked with bread, and their popularity may be indicated by the observation in the Bible that they are among the foods that the Israelites yearned for after leaving Egypt. Squash and melons were eaten raw, or flavored with vinegar
Vinegar
Vinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional...
. Black radishes were also were eaten raw when in season during the autumn and winter. The Talmud mentions the use of radish seeds to produce oil, and considered eating radishes to have health benefits.
Wild herbs
Herb
Except in botanical usage, an herb is "any plant with leaves, seeds, or flowers used for flavoring, food, medicine, or perfume" or "a part of such a plant as used in cooking"...
were collected and were eaten uncooked or cooked. These are known to have included garden rocket and mallow
Corchorus
Corchorus is a genus of about 40-100 species of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae, native to tropical and subtropical regions throughout the world....
and both leaf chicory
Chicory
Common chicory, Cichorium intybus, is a somewhat woody, perennial herbaceous plant usually with bright blue flowers, rarely white or pink. Various varieties are cultivated for salad leaves, chicons , or for roots , which are baked, ground, and used as a coffee substitute and additive. It is also...
and endive
Endive
Endive , Cichorium endivia, is a leaf vegetable belonging to the daisy family. Endive can be cooked or used raw in salads.-Background:Endive is also a common name for some types of chicory...
.
Wild lettuce
Lactuca virosa
Lactuca virosa is a plant in the Lactuca genus, ingested often for its mild psychotropic effects which are often described as being similar to that of opium. It is related to common lettuce Lactuca virosa is a plant in the Lactuca (lettuce) genus, ingested often for its mild psychotropic...
, known as chazeret, was a leafy herb with prickly, red tinged leaves that became bitter as they matured. It was cultivated from around 800 BCE. Sweeter head-lettuce was only developed and introduced by the Romans. Bitter herbs
Maror
Maror also Marror, refers to the bitter herbs eaten at the Passover Seder in keeping with the biblical commandment "with bitter herbs they shall eat it." .-Biblical source:...
eaten at the Passover sacrifice
Korban Pesach
The Passover sacrifice , also known as the "sacrifice of Passover", the "Paschal Lamb" is the sacrifice that the Torah mandates to be brought on the eve of Passover, and eaten on the first night of the holiday with bitter herbs and matzo. According to the Torah, it was first offered on the night of...
with the unleavened bread, matza
Matzo
Matzo or matzah is an unleavened bread traditionally eaten by Jews during the week-long Passover holiday, when eating chametz—bread and other food which is made with leavened grain—is forbidden according to Jewish law. Currently, the most ubiquitous type of Matzo is the traditional Ashkenazic...
, were known as merorim. "Chazeret" is listed in the Mishna (Pesahim
Pesahim
Pesahim is the third tractate of Seder Moed of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. It is concerned mainly with the laws of the Jewish holiday Passover as well as the Passover lamb offering...
2:6) as the preferred bitter herb for this Passover ritual, along with other bitter herbs, including chicory or endive (ulshin), horehound
Marrubium vulgare
Marrubium vulgare is a flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae, native to Europe, northern Africa and Asia....
(tamcha), reichardia or eryngo
Eryngium
Eryngium is a genus in the family Apiaceae of about 230 species of annuals and perennials with hairless and usually spiny leaves, and dome-shaped umbels of flowers resembling those of thistles. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, with the centre of diversity in South America. Some species...
(charchavina) and wormwood
Artemisia (plant)
Artemisia is a large, diverse genus of plants with between 200 to 400 species belonging to the daisy family Asteraceae. It comprises hardy herbs and shrubs known for their volatile oils. They grow in temperate climates of the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere, usually in dry or semi-dry...
(maror).
Mushrooms
Edible mushroom
Edible mushrooms are the fleshy and edible fruiting bodies of several species of fungi. Mushrooms belong to the macrofungi, because their fruiting structures are large enough to be seen with the naked eye. They can appear either below ground or above ground where they may be picked by hand...
, especially of the Boletus
Boletus edulis
Boletus edulis, commonly known as penny bun, porcino or cep, is a basidiomycete fungus, and the type species of the genus Boletus. Widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere across Europe, Asia, and North America, it does not occur naturally in the Southern Hemisphere, although it has been...
type, were gathered in many areas, particularly when plentiful after a major rainfall. The Talmud mentions mushrooms in connection with their exemption from tithe
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
s and as a desert at the Passover seder.
Sesame
Sesame
Sesame is a flowering plant in the genus Sesamum. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cultivated for its edible seeds, which grow in pods....
seeds were used in the preparation of oil
Sesame oil
Sesame oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from sesame seeds. Besides being used as a cooking oil in South India, it is often used as a flavor enhancer in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and to a lesser extent Southeast Asian cuisine.The oil from the nutrient rich seed is popular in alternative...
, or were eaten dry, or were added to dishes such as stews as a flavoring; the leftovers after pressing out the oil were eaten in a cake form. The Hebrew for sesame, shumshum, is related to the Akkadian
Akkadian language
Akkadian is an extinct Semitic language that was spoken in ancient Mesopotamia. The earliest attested Semitic language, it used the cuneiform writing system derived ultimately from ancient Sumerian, an unrelated language isolate...
samassammu, meaning “oil plant”, as the seeds contain about 50% oil, which was pressed from the seeds. Sesame is not mentioned in the Bible, but the Mishna lists sesame oil as suitable for lighting the Sabbath lights, and the oil was also used for frying.
Fruit
FruitFruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
was an important source of food for the Israelites, particularly grapes, olives and figs. Grapes were grown mostly for wine, although some were eaten fresh at harvest time, or dried as raisins for storage while olives were grown exclusively for their oil, until the Roman period. Other fruits that were eaten were the date, pomegranate and sycamore fig.
The ancient Israelites built terraces of leveled areas in the hill country for planting a variety of crops, including grains, vegetables and fruit tree
Fruit tree
A fruit tree is a tree which bears fruit that is consumed or used by people — all trees that are flowering plants produce fruit, which are the ripened ovaries of flowers containing one or more seeds. In horticultural usage, the term 'fruit tree' is limited to those that provide fruit for...
s. All the trees, with the exception of the olive, produced fruit that could be eaten fresh or be made into fresh juice while in season. Fruit was also processed for later use in a variety of ways: Fruit with high sugar content was fermented to make alcoholic beverages; grapes were most commonly used for this. Fruit was also boiled down into thick, sweet syrup, referred to in the Bible as dvash (honey). Grapes, figs, dates and apricots were also dried and preserved individually or put on a string or pressed into cakes. Since dried fruit are an efficient source of energy, they were prepared as provisions for journeys and long marches.
Olives and olive oil
The oliveOlive
The olive , Olea europaea), is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea.Its fruit, also called the olive, is of major agricultural importance in the...
is one of the biblical Seven Species and one of the three elements of the “Mediterranean triad” in Israelite cuisine. Olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
was used for not only as food and for cooking, but also for lighting, sacrificial offerings, ointment, and anointment for priestly or royal office.
Although olives were used to produce oil from the Bronze Age, it was only by the Roman period that the techniques were introduced to cure olives in lye
Lye
Lye is a corrosive alkaline substance, commonly sodium hydroxide or historically potassium hydroxide . Previously, lye was among the many different alkalis leached from hardwood ashes...
and then brine
Brine
Brine is water, saturated or nearly saturated with salt .Brine is used to preserve vegetables, fruit, fish, and meat, in a process known as brining . Brine is also commonly used to age Halloumi and Feta cheeses, or for pickling foodstuffs, as a means of preserving them...
to remove their natural bitterness and make them edible as a food.
Olives were harvested in the late summer and were processed for oil by crushing the olives, pressing the mash and separating the oil from the flesh. In the early Iron Age period, this was done by treading the olives in basins cut into rock, or with a mortar or stone on a flat slab. In the later Iron Age period, the introduction of the beam press made large scale processing possible.
The discovery of many ancient olive presses in various locations indicates that olive oil production was highly developed in ancient Israel. The oil production center dating from the 7th century BCE discovered at Ekron
Ekron
The city of Ekron , was one of the five cities of the famed Philistine pentapolis, located in southwestern Canaan. Ekron lies 35 kilometers west of Jerusalem, and 18 kilometers north of ancient Gath, on the eastern edge of Israel's coastal plain.-History:...
, a Philistine city, has over one hundred large olive oil presses, and is the most complete olive oil production center from ancient times to be discovered. It indicates that ancient Israel was a major producer of olive oil for its residents as well as for other parts of the ancient Near East
Ancient Near East
The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia , ancient Egypt, ancient Iran The ancient Near East was the home of early civilizations within a region roughly corresponding to the modern Middle East: Mesopotamia...
, such as Egypt and especially Mesopotamia. In addition to the large-scale olive oil production for commerce and export, presses have been found in ordinary houses, indicating that this was also a cottage industry.
Archaeological remains at Masada
Masada
Masada is the name for a site of ancient palaces and fortifications in the South District of Israel, on top of an isolated rock plateau, or horst, on the eastern edge of the Judean Desert, overlooking the Dead Sea. Masada is best known for the violence that occurred there in the first century CE...
and other sites indicate that the most common olive cultivar was the indigenous Nabali, followed by the Souri. In Roman times, other olive cultivars were imported from Syria and Egypt.
There is also some written information about olive oil. The Bible describes its use in relation to certain sacrifices in which olive oil is used (for example, . However, these sacrificial “recipes” can be assumed to represent some of the everyday uses of oil and methods for cooking and frying. Olive oil was mixed with flour to make bread in the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath and is also noted as a valuable product for eating . Olive oil is also mentioned on the Samaria
Ostraca House
Ostraca of Samaria are Sixty-four legible ostraca which were found in Samaria. These are written in early Hebrew characters, which very closely resemble those of the Siloam Inscription, but show a slight development of the cursive script. These ostraca were found in the treasury of the palace of...
and Arad
Tel Arad
Tel Arad or 'old' Arad is located west of the Dead Sea, about 10 km west of modern Arad in an area surrounded by mountain ridges which is known as the Arad Plain. The site is divided into a lower city and an upper hill which holds the only ever discovered 'House of Yahweh' in the land of...
ostraca
Ostracon
An ostracon is a piece of pottery , usually broken off from a vase or other earthenware vessel. In archaeology, ostraca may contain scratched-in words or other forms of writing which may give clues as to the time when the piece was in use...
.
The consumption of olive oil varied with social class – it was less available to the poor, but it may have become more available later in the Israelite period as the means of production improved and became more widespread. By early Roman times, the Mishna indicates that it was one of the four essential foods that a husband had to provide his wife, and it has been calculated that at a minimum, this represented about 11 percent of the overall calories supplied by the “food basket” described at that time.
Grapes
GrapeGrape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...
s are another of the biblical Seven Species and were used mainly for the production of wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, although they were also eaten fresh and dried. Grapes were dried in the sun to produce raisin
Raisin
Raisins are dried grapes. They are produced in many regions of the world. Raisins may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking and brewing...
s, which could then be stored for a long time. Raisins were also pressed into clusters and dried as cakes, which kept the interior raisins softer.
Grapes were also used to produce a thick, honey-like liquid, called grape honey (dvash anavim) that was used as a sweetener. Grape honey was made by treading the grapes in vats, but instead of fermenting the liquid produced, it was boiled to evaporate the water content, leaving behind the thick grape-honey syrup.
Figs
FigsCommon fig
The Common fig is a deciduous tree growing to heights of up to 6 m in the genus Ficus from the family Moraceae known as Common fig tree. It is a temperate species native to the Middle East.-Description:...
were an important source of food. Figs were cultivated throughout the land of Israel and fresh or dried figs were part of the daily diet. A common way of preparing dried figs was to chop them and press them into a cake.
Figs are one of the biblical Seven Species and are frequently mentioned in the Bible (for example, , and ). The remains of dried figs have been discovered from as early as the Neolithic period in Gezer, Israel and Gilgal in the Jordan Valley
Jordan Valley (Middle East)
The Jordan Valley forms part of the larger Jordan Rift Valley. It is 120 kilometers long and 15 kilometers wide, where it runs from Lake Tiberias in the north to northern Dead Sea in the south. It runs for an additional 155 kilometer south of the Dead Sea to Aqaba, an area also known as Wadi...
.
The fig tree (ficus carica) grew well in the hill country and produced two crops a season. Early ripening figs were regarded as delicacy because of their sweetness and were eaten fresh. Figs ripening in the later harvest were often dried and strung into a chain, or pressed into hard round or square-shaped cakes called a develah, and stored as a major source of winter food. The blocks of dried fig were sliced and eaten like bread.
The Mishna mentions figs as one the components of the prescribed “wife’s food basket” and they are estimated to have constituted 16% of the overall calories of the basket.
Dates
Dates were eaten fresh or dried, but were used mostly boiled into thick, long-lasting syrupSyrup
In cooking, a syrup is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars but showing little tendency to deposit crystals...
called “date honey” (dvash temarim) for use as a sweetener. This syrup was prepared by soaking the dates in water for some time until they disintegrated and then boiling the resulting liquid down into thick syrup. The honey in the Biblical reference of “a land flowing with milk and honey” is date honey.
Fresh, ripe dates were available from the mid- to late-summer. Some were sun-dried and pressed into blocks to dry completely, and then used throughout the year, especially as food for travelers. Dates were also fermented into one of the “strong drinks” referred to in the Bible as “shechar”.
The date palm required a hot and dry climate and mostly grew and produced fruit in the Jordan Rift Valley
Jordan Rift Valley
The Jordan Rift Valley is an elongated depression located in modern-day Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian territories. This geographic region includes the Jordan River, Jordan Valley, Hula Valley, Lake Tiberias and the Dead Sea, the lowest land elevation on Earth...
, from Jericho to the Sea of Galilee
Sea of Galilee
The Sea of Galilee, also Kinneret, Lake of Gennesaret, or Lake Tiberias , is the largest freshwater lake in Israel, and it is approximately in circumference, about long, and wide. The lake has a total area of , and a maximum depth of approximately 43 m...
. In these arid areas, the date was sometimes the only plant food available, and was a primary component of the diet, but it was less important elsewhere.
Pomegranates
Pomegranate
The pomegranate , Punica granatum, is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub or small tree growing between five and eight meters tall.Native to the area of modern day Iran, the pomegranate has been cultivated in the Caucasus since ancient times. From there it spread to Asian areas such as the Caucasus as...
s were usually eaten fresh, although occasionally they were used to make juice
Pomegranate juice
Pomegranate juice is made from the fruit of the pomegranate. It is used in cooking both as a fresh juice and as a concentrated syrup, particularly in Persian cuisine.-Possible health benefits and risks:...
or wine, or sun-dried for use when the fresh fruit was out of season. They probably played a minor part in Israelite cuisine, but were symbolically important, as adornments on the hem of the robe of the high priest
Kohen Gadol
The High Priest was the chief religious official of Israelite religion and of classical Judaism from the rise of the Israelite nation until the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem...
and the Temple pillars, and embossed on coinage, and are also listed in the Bible as one of the Seven Species of the Land of Israel.
Other fruits and nuts
Fruit, such as the sycamore fig, carob, mulberry, and possibly the apple were also eaten. Usually, these fruits were not cultivated but were picked in the wild when they were in season.The sycamore fig (ficus sycamorus) was very common in the warmer parts of Israel and was grown primarily for its wood, but it provided a steady supply of small figs, eaten mainly by the poor.
Other native trees producing fruits included the carob, which was probably popular due to its sweet taste, and the black mulberry.
The tapuah, which means “apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
” in modern Hebrew, is mentioned in the Bible, but it is not clear if this referred to another fruit, such as the quince
Quince
The quince , or Cydonia oblonga, is the sole member of the genus Cydonia and native to warm-temperate southwest Asia in the Caucasus region...
.
Almond
Almond
The almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...
s, walnuts and pistachio
Pistachio
The pistachio, Pistacia vera in the Anacardiaceae family, is a small tree originally from Persia , which now can also be found in regions of Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Greece, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Sicily and possibly Afghanistan , as well as in the United States,...
s were eaten and are mentioned in the Bible. Almonds were widespread in the region from prehistoric times and the Bible mentions almonds (shaked) and pistachios (botnim) as among the “choice fruits of the land” sent by Jacob as a gift to the ruler of Egypt . Almonds and pistachios were probably eaten primarily by the wealthy. The walnut reached Israel from Mesopotamia by at least 2000 BCE
20th century BC
The 20th century BC is a century which lasted from the year 2000 BC to 1901 BC.-Events:* 2000 BC: Arrival of the ancestors of the Latins in Italy.* 2000 BC: Town of Mantua was presumably founded.* 2000 BC: Stonehenge is believed to have been completed....
and is mentioned once in the Bible . Walnuts became common during the Second Temple period and so widespread that the word for walnut, egoz, became the generic Hebrew word for nut at that time.
Wine and other drinks
The Israelites usually drank water drawn from wellsWater well
A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a trash pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
, cistern
Cistern
A cistern is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by their waterproof linings...
s or rivers. They also drank milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
(for example, as mentioned in the Bible in ), often in the form of sour milk
Buttermilk
Buttermilk refers to a number of dairy drinks. Originally, buttermilk was the liquid left behind after churning butter out of cream. It also refers to a range of fermented milk drinks, common in warm climates where unrefrigerated fresh milk otherwise sours quickly...
, thin yoghurt
Yoghurt
Yoghurt, yogurt or yogourt is a dairy product produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. The bacteria used to make yoghurt are known as "yoghurt cultures"...
or whey
Whey
Whey or Milk Serum is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained. It is a by-product of the manufacture of cheese or casein and has several commercial uses. Sweet whey is manufactured during the making of rennet types of hard cheese like cheddar or Swiss cheese...
, when it was available in the spring and summer. They drank fresh juices from fruits in season as well. The most strongly preferred beverage was wine, although some beer may have also been produced and wine was an important part of the diet and a source of calories, sugar, and iron. Making wine was also a practical way to preserve fruit juices for long-term storage. Usually, wine was made from grapes for everyday use, as well as for rituals, such as sacrificial libations. Less often, wine was made from pomegranates and dates.
Wine
The Mediterranean climate and soil of the mountainous areas of the area are well suited to viticultureViticulture
Viticulture is the science, production and study of grapes which deals with the series of events that occur in the vineyard. When the grapes are used for winemaking, it is also known as viniculture...
, and both archaeological evidence and written records indicate the significant cultivation of grapes in ancient Israel and the popularity of wine-drinking. The production capacity apparent from archaeological remains and the frequent biblical references to wine suggest that it was the principal alcoholic beverage
Alcoholic beverage
An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits. They are legally consumed in most countries, and over 100 countries have laws regulating their production, sale, and consumption...
of the ancient Israelites. Based on the remains of wine production facilities and storage rooms, it has been estimated that on average, people could have consumed one liter of wine per person per day.
Wine press
A wine press is a device used to extract juice from crushed grapes during wine making. There are a number of different styles of presses that are used by wine makers but their overall functionality is the same. Each style of press exerts controlled pressure in order to free the juice from the fruit...
and vats, dating to the biblical period, have been found. One typical example at Gibeon has a wide surface for treading the grapes and a series of collecting vats. Archaeological finds at Ashkelon
Ashkelon
Ashkelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border with the Gaza Strip. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Neolithic Age...
and Gibeon indicate large large-scale wine production in the eighth
8th century BC
The 8th century BC started the first day of 800 BC and ended the last day of 701 BC.-Overview:The 8th century BC was a period of great changes in civilizations. In Egypt, the 23rd and 24th dynasties led to rule from Nubia in the 25th Dynasty...
and seventh centuries BCE
7th century BC
The 7th century BC started the first day of 700 BC and ended the last day of 601 BC.The Assyrian Empire continued to dominate the Near East during this century, exercising formidable power over neighbors like Babylon and Egypt. In the last two decades of the century, however, the empire began to...
, which most likely developed to supply the Assyrian empire
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
, and then the Babylonia
Babylonia
Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia , with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as a major power when Hammurabi Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as...
ns, as well as the local population. Vineyards are mentioned many times in the Bible, including in detailed descriptions of the method for establishing a vineyard
Vineyard
A vineyard is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice...
and the types of vines
Vitis
Vitis is a genus of about 60 species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus is made up of species predominantly from the Northern hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, both for direct consumption of the fruit and for fermentation to produce...
. The Bible refers to several types of wine and one of the Arad
Tel Arad
Tel Arad or 'old' Arad is located west of the Dead Sea, about 10 km west of modern Arad in an area surrounded by mountain ridges which is known as the Arad Plain. The site is divided into a lower city and an upper hill which holds the only ever discovered 'House of Yahweh' in the land of...
ostraca
Ostracon
An ostracon is a piece of pottery , usually broken off from a vase or other earthenware vessel. In archaeology, ostraca may contain scratched-in words or other forms of writing which may give clues as to the time when the piece was in use...
also mentions wine among the supplies being sent to a garrison of soldiers.
Another indication of the importance of wine in ancient Israel is that Hebrew contains numerous terms for various stages and types of vines, grape varieties and words for wine. The word yayin was used both as a generic word for wine and as a term for wine in its first year, once it had undergone sufficient fermentation
Fermentation (wine)
The process of fermentation in wine turns grape juice into an alcoholic beverage. During fermentation, yeast interact with sugars in the juice to create ethanol, commonly known as ethyl alcohol, and carbon dioxide...
from the initial stage, when it was called tirosh. The type of wine was determined by the grapes, the time allowed for fermentation, and the age of the wine.
The often coarse and unrefined taste of ancient wine was adjusted to make it more drinkable. Spices were added directly to the wine to improve the aroma, and other ingredients, such as honey, pepper, herbs and even lime
Calcium hydroxide
Calcium hydroxide, traditionally called slaked lime, is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula Ca2. It is a colourless crystal or white powder and is obtained when calcium oxide is mixed, or "slaked" with water. It has many names including hydrated lime, builders lime, slack lime, cal, or...
, resin
Resin
Resin in the most specific use of the term is a hydrocarbon secretion of many plants, particularly coniferous trees. Resins are valued for their chemical properties and associated uses, such as the production of varnishes, adhesives, and food glazing agents; as an important source of raw materials...
or seawater were added to improve the flavor or disguise a poor-tasting wine. Wine was also sweetened
Sweetness of wine
The subjective sweetness of a wine is determined by the interaction of several factors, including the amount of sugar in the wine to be sure, but also the relative levels of alcohol, acids, and tannins. Briefly: sugars and alcohol enhance a wine's sweetness; acids and bitter tannins counteract it...
by the addition of grape juice syrup
Fruit syrup
Fruit syrup as a food ingredient is a concentrated juice made from a less expensive fruit and used to sweeten more expensive products and to extend their quantity . A typical use would be for an "all-fruit" strawberry spread that contains apple juice as well as strawberries. It is regularly in...
. Wine was also sometimes given an aroma by rubbing the winepress with wood resin. On the other hand, wine could also be added to drinking water to improve the taste, especially towards the end of the summer when rainwater had been standing in a cistern for at least six months. This also had the beneficial effect
Wine and health
The issue of wine and health is a topic of considerable discussion and research. Wine has a long history of use as an early form of medication, being recommended variously as a safe alternative to drinking water, an antiseptic for treating wounds and a digestive aid, as well as a cure for a wide...
of lowering the bacteria content of the water.
Harvest (wine)
The harvesting of wine grapes is one of the most crucial steps in the process of winemaking. The time of harvest is determined primarily by the ripeness of the grape as measured by sugar, acid and tannin levels with winemakers basing their decision to pick based on the style of wine they wish to...
in mid-summer, most grapes were taken to wine presses to extract their juice for winemaking
Winemaking
Winemaking, or vinification, is the production of wine, starting with selection of the grapes or other produce and ending with bottling the finished wine. Although most wine is made from grapes, it may also be made from other fruit or non-toxic plant material...
. Once fermented, wine was transferred to wineskins or large amphora
Amphora
An amphora is a type of vase-shaped, usually ceramic container with two handles and a long neck narrower than the body...
e for storage. Israelite amphorae were typically tall with large handles and little decoration, and the handles were often inscribed with the name of the city in which the wine had been produced, the winemaker’s stamp and sometimes the year and the vintage
Vintage
Vintage, in wine-making, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product . A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certain wines, it can denote quality, as in Port wine, where Port houses make and...
. Amphorae made long term storage possible, especially in caves or cool cellars. Glass bottles were introduced only in the 1st century CE by the Romans.
The insides of amphorae were often coated with a preservative resin, such as from the terebinth
Pistacia palaestina
Pistacia palaestina is a tree or shrub common in the Levant region . It is called terebinth in English, a name also used for Pistacia terebinthus, a similar tree from the western Mediterranean Basin.-Description:...
, and this imparted a pine flavor and aroma to the wine. Before the jars were sealed with pitch
Pitch (resin)
Pitch is the name for any of a number of viscoelastic, solid polymers. Pitch can be made from petroleum products or plants. Petroleum-derived pitch is also called bitumen. Pitch produced from plants is also known as resin. Products made from plant resin are also known as rosin.Pitch was...
, they were filled completely and often topped with a thin layer of olive oil to prevent spoilage due to exposure to air.
During the Greek period
Ancient Greece and wine
The influence of ancient Greece on wine is significant not only to the Greek wine industry but to the development of almost all European wine regions and to the history of wine itself...
, the style of winemaking changed. Ripe grapes were first dried
Straw wine
Straw wine, or raisin wine, is a wine made from grapes that have been dried to concentrate their juice. The result is similar to that of the ice wine process, but suitable for warmer climates. The classic method dries clusters of grapes on mats of straw in the sun, but some regions dry them under...
to concentrate the sugars
Sugars in wine
The sugars in wine grapes are what make winemaking possible. During the process of fermentation, sugars are broken down and converted by yeasts into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Grapes accumulate sugars as they grow on the grapevine through the translocation of sucrose molecules that are produced...
, and these then produced a much sweeter and higher alcohol content wine that needed to be diluted with water to be drinkable. Before this, watered-down wine was disparaged, but by the time of the Talmud, wine that did not require dilution with water was considered unfit for consumption.
Beer
BeerBeer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
, produced by brewing
Brewing
Brewing is the production of beer through steeping a starch source in water and then fermenting with yeast. Brewing has taken place since around the 6th millennium BCE, and archeological evidence suggests that this technique was used in ancient Egypt...
barley, was another alcoholic beverage common in the ancient Near East. Beer was the primary beverage of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia and it can be assumed that in Israel, which is located between the two, beer was also known. The biblical term sekhar may refer to beer or to alcoholic drinks in general.
The production of bread and beer were closely linked, since barley was the same key ingredient used for both, and most of the tools used in beer production, such as mortars, querns and winnowing baskets were also the same as for bread making. Archaeological evidence specific to beer making is thus uncommon, and earlier indications were that the ancient Israelites did not often drink beer. More recently, Iron Age sites in Israel have produced remains such as beer jugs, bottles, strainers and stoppers, all of which provide evidence that the Israelites drank beer. Nonetheless, the widespread cultivation of grapes, used primarily for winemaking, indicates that wine drinking was probably far more common than beer drinking.
Meat
The Israelites usually ate meat from domesticatedDomestication
Domestication or taming is the process whereby a population of animals or plants, through a process of selection, becomes accustomed to human provision and control. In the Convention on Biological Diversity a domesticated species is defined as a 'species in which the evolutionary process has been...
goat
Goat
The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...
s and sheep. Goat’s meat was the most common. Fat-tailed sheep
Fat-tailed sheep
The fat-tailed sheep is a general type of domestic sheep known for their distinctive large tails and hindquarters. Fat-tailed sheep breeds comprise approximately 25% of the world sheep population, and are commonly found in northern parts of Africa, the Middle East, Pakistan, North India, Western...
were the predominant variety of sheep in ancient Israel but as sheep were valued more than goats, they were eaten less often. The fat of the tail was considered a delicacy and even until modern times, it was prized in the cuisine of the Mizrahi Jews
Cuisine of the Mizrahi Jews
The cuisine of the Mizrahi Jews is an assortment of cooking traditions that developed among the Jews of The Middle East, North Africa, Asia, and Arab countries. Mizrahi Jews have also been known as Oriental Jews . Jews of the Mizrahi communities cook foods that were and are popular in their home...
. Beef
Beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...
and venison
Venison
Venison is the meat of a game animal, especially a deer but also other animals such as antelope, wild boar, etc.-Etymology:The word derives from the Latin vēnor...
were eaten primarily by the elites, and fattened calves provided veal
Veal
Veal is the meat of young cattle , as opposed to meat from older cattle. Though veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, most veal comes from male calves of dairy cattle breeds...
for the wealthy (for example, as mentioned in the Bible).
For most people, meat was eaten only a few times a year when animals were slaughtered for the major festivals, or at tribal meetings, celebrations such as wedding
Wedding
A wedding is the ceremony in which two people are united in marriage or a similar institution. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes...
s, and for the visits of important guests . Only at the king's table was meat served daily, according to the Bible.
Although most meat was obtained from domesticated animals, meat from hunted animals
Game (food)
Game is any animal hunted for food or not normally domesticated. Game animals are also hunted for sport.The type and range of animals hunted for food varies in different parts of the world. This will be influenced by climate, animal diversity, local taste and locally accepted view about what can or...
was also sometimes available, as the story of Isaac
Isaac
Isaac as described in the Hebrew Bible, was the only son Abraham had with his wife Sarah, and was the father of Jacob and Esau. Isaac was one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites...
and Esau , certain Biblical lists (for example), and archaeological evidence indicate. The remains of gazelle
Gazelle
A gazelle is any of many antelope species in the genus Gazella, or formerly considered to belong to it. Six species are included in two genera, Eudorcas and Nanger, which were formerly considered subgenera...
, red deer
Red Deer
The red deer is one of the largest deer species. Depending on taxonomy, the red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Asia Minor, parts of western Asia, and central Asia. It also inhabits the Atlas Mountains region between Morocco and Tunisia in northwestern Africa, being...
and fallow deer
Fallow Deer
The Fallow Deer is a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. This common species is native to western Eurasia, but has been introduced widely elsewhere. It often includes the rarer Persian Fallow Deer as a subspecies , while others treat it as an entirely different species The Fallow...
are the most commonly found in the archaeological record. Archaeological evidence from an Iron Age market excavated at Ashkelon shows that game was also sold to those who could not hunt or trap them themselves.
However, meat from wild animals was more common at times of economic distress and in the northern areas, where forests and open land provided a habitat for more wild animals.
Meat was prepared in several different ways. The most common was to cook it with water as a broth or a stew
Stew
A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables , meat, especially tougher meats suitable for slow-cooking, such as beef. Poultry, sausages, and seafood are also used...
(for example). Meat stewed with onions, garlic and leeks and flavored with cumin
Cumin
Cumin is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, native from the east Mediterranean to India. Its seeds are used in the cuisines of many different cultures, in both whole and ground form.-Etymology:...
and coriander
Coriander
Coriander is an annual herb in the family Apiaceae. Coriander is native to southern Europe and North Africa to southwestern Asia. It is a soft, hairless plant growing to tall. The leaves are variable in shape, broadly lobed at the base of the plant, and slender and feathery higher on the...
is described on ancient Babylonian cuneiform tablets
Yale Babylonian Collection
Comprising some 45,000 items, the Yale Babylonian Collection is an independent branch of the Yale University Library housed on the Yale University campus in Sterling Memorial Library at New Haven, Connecticut, United States....
, and it is most likely that it was prepared similarly in ancient Israel. Stewed meat was considered to be a dish worthy of serving to honored guests . A less common way to prepare meat was to roast
Roasting
Roasting is a cooking method that uses dry heat, whether an open flame, oven, or other heat source. Roasting usually causes caramelization or Maillard browning of the surface of the food, which is considered by some as a flavor enhancement. Roasting uses more indirect, diffused heat , and is...
it over an open fire, but this was done particularly for the meat of the Passover lamb
Korban Pesach
The Passover sacrifice , also known as the "sacrifice of Passover", the "Paschal Lamb" is the sacrifice that the Torah mandates to be brought on the eve of Passover, and eaten on the first night of the holiday with bitter herbs and matzo. According to the Torah, it was first offered on the night of...
. For long-term storage, meat was smoked, dried or salted, according to indications in texts and ethnographic studies.
Poultry and eggs
The Israelites ate domesticated birds such as pigeons, turtledovesStreptopelia
Streptopelia is a genus of birds in the dove family. These are mainly slim, small to medium-sized species. The upperparts tend to be pale brown, and the underparts are often a shade of pink. Many have a characteristic black-and-white patch on the neck, and monotonous cooing songs.The heartland of...
, ducks and geese
Goose
The word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....
, and wild birds such as quail
Common Quail
The Common Quail, Coturnix coturnix, is a small bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae. It is widespread and is found in parts of Europe, .- Description :It is a small rotund bird, essentially streaked brown with...
and partridge
Partridge
Partridges are birds in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are a non-migratory Old World group.These are medium-sized birds, intermediate between the larger pheasants and the smaller quails. Partridges are native to Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East...
. Remains from archaeological excavations at the Ophel
Ophel
The City of David is the oldest settled neighborhood of Jerusalem and a major archaeological site due to recognition as biblical Jerusalem. It is a narrow ridge running south from the Temple Mount. It was a walled city in the Bronze Age and, according to tradition, it is the place where King...
in Jerusalem and other Iron Age sites show that domestic birds were available, but consumption was small. The inclusion of pigeons and turtledoves in the Biblical sacrifice lists implies that they were raised domestically, and the remains of dovecotes
Dovecotes
Dovecotes is a housing estate at Barnhurst, Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It is situated NNW of the city centre and neighbours Pendeford which is adjacent to the border with Staffordshire, within the Oxley ward of Wolverhampton City Council....
discovered from the Greek and Roman periods confirm this. Biblical references and archaeological evidence also demonstrate that wild birds were hunted and eaten.
The turtledove
Streptopelia
Streptopelia is a genus of birds in the dove family. These are mainly slim, small to medium-sized species. The upperparts tend to be pale brown, and the underparts are often a shade of pink. Many have a characteristic black-and-white patch on the neck, and monotonous cooing songs.The heartland of...
was present from about April to October, while the rock pigeon
Rock Pigeon
The Rock Dove or Rock Pigeon, is a member of the bird family Columbidae . In common usage, this bird is often simply referred to as the "pigeon"....
was available throughout the year. The pigeon appears to have been domesticated in Sumer
Sumer
Sumer was a civilization and historical region in southern Mesopotamia, modern Iraq during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age....
ia and Canaan
Canaan
Canaan is a historical region roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the western parts of Jordan...
during the second millennium BCE
2nd millennium BC
The 2nd millennium BC marks the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age.Its first half is dominated by the Middle Kingdom of Egypt and Babylonia. The alphabet develops. Indo-Iranian migration onto the Iranian plateau and onto the Indian subcontinent propagates the use of the chariot...
, and remained the predominant fowl
Fowl
Fowl is a word for birds in general but usually refers to birds belonging to one of two biological orders, namely the gamefowl or landfowl and the waterfowl...
in ancient Israel until the end of the Second Temple period. Nonetheless, to avoid the spread of disease, pigeons could only be raised in small numbers and were thus fairly costly and not a regular part of the diet.
Geese, originally domesticated in ancient Egypt, were raised in ancient Israel. They are most likely the “fattened fowl” on King Solomon’s
Solomon
Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
table . Goose breeding is also discussed in the Mishna. Like other animals, birds were fattened for consumption on special occasions, and for the wealthy.
It is unclear when chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
became part of the diet. There are some archaeological remains from Iron Age sites, but these were likely from rooster
Rooster
A rooster, also known as a cockerel, cock or chanticleer, is a male chicken with the female being called a hen. Immature male chickens of less than a year's age are called cockerels...
s as a fighting bird
Cockfight
A cockfight is a blood sport between two roosters , held in a ring called a cockpit. Cockfighting is now illegal throughout all states in the United States, Brazil, Australia and in most of Europe. It is still legal in several U.S. territories....
, which are also pictured on seals from the period as a symbol of ferocity, such as on the 6th century BCE onyx seal of Jaazaniah. Chicken became common around the 2nd century BCE, and during the Roman period, chickens emerged as an important feature of the cuisine, with the Talmud describing it as “the choicest of birds.” By Roman times pigeons and chickens were the principle poultry.
Until the domestication of the chicken, eggs
Egg (food)
Eggs are laid by females of many different species, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and have probably been eaten by mankind for millennia. Bird and reptile eggs consist of a protective eggshell, albumen , and vitellus , contained within various thin membranes...
were available in limited quantities and were considered a delicacy, as in ancient Egypt. The most common birds – turtledoves and pigeons – were reared for their meat and not for their very small eggs. Biblical references to eggs are only in reference to gathering them from the wild (for example, and ). Eggs seem to have increased in use for food only with the introduction of chickens as food, and were commonly used as food by Roman times.
Fish
The Israelites ate a variety of fresh and saltwater fish, according to both archaeological and textual evidence. Remains of freshwater fish from the Yarkon and Jordan rivers and the Sea of Galilee have been found in excavations, and include St. Peter’s fishTilapia
Tilapia , is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the tilapiine cichlid tribe. Tilapia inhabit a variety of fresh water habitats, including shallow streams, ponds, rivers and lakes. Historically, they have been of major importance in artisan fishing in Africa and the...
and mouthbreeders. Saltwater fish discovered in excavations include sea bream, grouper
Grouper
Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes.Not all serranids are called groupers; the family also includes the sea basses. The common name grouper is usually given to fish in one of two large genera: Epinephelus...
, meager
Argyrosomus regius
Argyrosomus regius is a fish of the Sciaenidae family. It has a similar form to a European seabass, with a pearly-silver coloration and a yellow-coloured mouth. Length can go from 40–50 cm up to 2 m long, with weights up to 55 kilograms.A...
and gray mullet
Mullet (fish)
The mullets or grey mullets are a family and order of ray-finned fish found worldwide in coastal temperate and tropical waters, and in some species in fresh water. Mullets have served as an important source of food in Mediterranean Europe since Roman times...
. Most of these come from the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, but in the later Iron Age period, some are from the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
.
Fishermen supplied fish to inland communities, as remains of fish, including bones and scales, have been discovered at many inland sites. To preserve them for transport, the fish were first smoked or dried and salted. Merchants also imported fish, sometimes from as far as from Egypt, where pickled roe
Roe
Roe or hard roe is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses of fish and certain marine animals, such as shrimp, scallop and sea urchins...
was an export article. Remains of Nile Perch
Lates
Lates is a genus of freshwater and marine fish in the family Latidae of the order Perciformes. The type species is Lates niloticus, the Nile perch. The Lates species are native to the Indian and western Pacific Oceans and to rivers and lakes in Africa; several species are endemic to the Rift...
from Egypt have been found, and these must have been smoked or dried, before being imported through the trade network that connected ancient Near Eastern societies. Merchants shipped fish to Jerusalem and there was evidently a significant trade in fish; one of the gates of Jerusalem was called the Fish Gate, named for a fish market nearby .
It is unclear to what extent fish played a role in the cuisine, but it is apparent that fish became steadily more available during the Israelite and Judean monarchies. Fish products were salted and dried and sent great distances. However, even in the later Persian, Greek and Roman periods, the cost of preserving and transporting fish must have meant that only wealthier inhabitants of the highland towns and cities could afford it, or those who lived close to the sources, where it was less expensive.
Dairy foods
Goats, and to a lesser extent, sheep, provided milkMilk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
for part of the year, and milk and dairy products were a significant source of food. Dairy products are mentioned in the Bible (for example, , , and , and a repeated description of the Land of Israel in the Bible is “a land flowing with milk and honey” (for example, , , and ).
Fresh milk could not be stored for long without spoiling. Typically, thick sour milk
Buttermilk
Buttermilk refers to a number of dairy drinks. Originally, buttermilk was the liquid left behind after churning butter out of cream. It also refers to a range of fermented milk drinks, common in warm climates where unrefrigerated fresh milk otherwise sours quickly...
called laban was drunk because the Israelites stored the milk in skin containers, in which it curdled quickly.
Milk had to be processed to preserve it. This was done by first churning
Churning (butter)
Churning is the process of shaking up whole milk to make butter, and various forms of butter churn have been used for the purpose. In Europe from the Middle Ages until the Industrial Revolution, this was generally as simple as a barrel with a plunger in it, which was moved by hand...
it, using a goatskin or clay container to separate the butterfat
Butterfat
Butterfat or milkfat is the fatty portion of milk. Milk and cream are often sold according to the amount of butterfat they contain.- Composition :The fatty acids of butterfat are typically composed as follows :...
from the whey
Whey
Whey or Milk Serum is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained. It is a by-product of the manufacture of cheese or casein and has several commercial uses. Sweet whey is manufactured during the making of rennet types of hard cheese like cheddar or Swiss cheese...
. The butterfat was processed by boiling and then cooling it to make clarified butter
Clarified butter
Clarified butter is milk fat rendered from butter to separate the milk solids and water from the butterfat. Typically, it is produced by melting butter and allowing the different components to separate by density...
, which could then be stored for a long time. Clarified butter was used principally for cooking and frying. Butter churn
Butter churn
A butter churn is a device used to convert cream into butter. This is done through a mechanical process, frequently via a pole inserted through the lid of the churn, or via a crank used to turn a rotating device inside the churn.-Process:...
s have been excavated at Beersheba
Tel Be'er Sheva
Tel Be'er Sheva is an archeological site in southern Israel believed to be the remains of the biblical town of Beersheba. It lies to the east of the modern city of Beersheba and to the east of the Bedouin town of Tel Sheva.-Biblical Beersheba:...
, dating from the 4th century BCE, and other ancient Israelite sites.
Goat milk and sheep’s milk cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
s were the most prevalent types of cheese. Soft cheese was made using cloth bags filled with soured milk. The thin liquid was drained through the cloth and soft cheese remained in the bag. A hard cheese was made from fermented soured milk: Milk was poured into special moulds in which it curdled and was then hardened by drying in the sun or by heating and numerous small cheese molds with holes for the draining the whey have been discovered. Cheese is not mentioned often in the Bible, but in one case, David is sent to take a gift of cheese to the commander of the army .
The Mishna and Talmud mention using the sap of fruit trees, such as figs, to harden cheese (a method still used by nomadic herders of the region until modern times). Using fig sap instead of animal enzymes
Rennet
Rennet is a complex of enzymes produced in any mammalian stomach to digest the mother's milk, and is often used in the production of cheese. Rennet contains many enzymes, including a proteolytic enzyme that coagulates the milk, causing it to separate into solids and liquid...
to make cheese also conformed to the prohibition on mixing meat and milk
Milk and meat in Jewish law
Mixtures of milk and meat are prohibited according to Jewish law. This dietary law, basic to kashrut, is based on a verse in the Book of Exodus, which forbids "boiling a goat in its mother's milk"...
.
Honey
Fruit syrup called “dvash” served as the primary sweetener and was most often made from dates. It was not until Talmudic times that the word “dvash”, now translated as “honey”, generally meant bee honeyHoney
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
. The Biblical term “dvash” usually did not mean bee honey, but thick syrup
Syrup
In cooking, a syrup is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars but showing little tendency to deposit crystals...
obtained from grapes, figs or dates. This syrup was similar to the date syrup, or “halek”, that many Mizrahi Jews continue to use in modern times.
The Biblical references to “honey from the crag” or “honey from the rock” could refer either to fig honey, as fig trees commonly grew in rocky outcrops, or to honey collected from wild bees, which made their nests in these places, as they still do in the region until today. The Bible refers to honey from bees in only a few instances, for example, when Samson
Samson
Samson, Shimshon ; Shamshoun or Sampson is the third to last of the Judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Tanakh ....
eats honey from bees made in the carcass of a lion and when Jonathan eats honey from a honeycomb
Honeycomb
A honeycomb is a mass of hexagonal waxcells built by honey bees in their nests to contain their larvae and stores of honey and pollen.Beekeepers may remove the entire honeycomb to harvest honey...
, and these references are to honey obtained from the wild.
Nonetheless, the oldest archaeological find relating to beekeeping
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
discovered to date is an apiary
Apiary
An apiary is a place where beehives of honey bees are kept. Traditionally beekeepers paid land rent in honey for the use of small parcels. Some farmers will provide free apiary sites, because they need pollination, and farmers who need many hives often pay for them to be moved to the crops when...
dating from about 900
10th century BC
The 10th century BC started the first day of 1000 BC and ended the last day of 901 BC.- Overview :This period followed the Bronze Age collapse in the Near East, and the century saw the Early Iron Age take hold there. The Greek Dark Ages which had come about in 1200 BC continued. The Neo-Assyrian...
BC at Rehov
Rehov
Rehov , meaning "broad", "wide place", was an important Bronze and Iron Age city located at Tel Rehov , an archaeological site in the Jordan Valley, Israel, approximately 5 km south of Beit She'an and 3 km west of the Jordan River...
, a Bronze- and Iron Age site in the Jordan Valley
Jordan Valley (Middle East)
The Jordan Valley forms part of the larger Jordan Rift Valley. It is 120 kilometers long and 15 kilometers wide, where it runs from Lake Tiberias in the north to northern Dead Sea in the south. It runs for an additional 155 kilometer south of the Dead Sea to Aqaba, an area also known as Wadi...
. The hives, made of straw and unbaked clay, could have housed more than a million bees, and indicate that honey was produced on a large scale. It is most likely that the inhabitants of Tel Rehov imported the bees from Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
because they were less aggressive than the local bees and produced a higher yield of honey. It is also possible that the domestication of bees for honey production was introduced from Egypt during the Iron Age and honey was being obtained from domesticated bees
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
from late in the Iron Age period.
Seasonings
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
, demonstrated by the fact that it is referred to throughout the Bible and its use was mandated with most sacrifices . Salt was obtained from the Mediterranean or the Dead Sea
Dead Sea
The Dead Sea , also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are below sea level, the lowest elevation on the Earth's surface. The Dead Sea is deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the world...
. It was produced by evaporating seawater from both natural and artificially created drying pans along the Mediterranean coast. It was also obtained by mining salt deposits
Halite
Halite , commonly known as rock salt, is the mineral form of sodium chloride . Halite forms isometric crystals. The mineral is typically colorless or white, but may also be light blue, dark blue, purple, pink, red, orange, yellow or gray depending on the amount and type of impurities...
, such as at Sodom near the Dead Sea. Salt had to be transported to other locations, so most communities had to purchase it.
Food was also flavored by plants, most native to the region and either cultivated or gathered in the wild, although a few spices were imported. Garlic and onions, and possibly fenugreek
Fenugreek
Fenugreek is a plant in the family Fabaceae. Fenugreek is used both as a herb and as a spice . The leaves and sprouts are also eaten as vegetables...
, were used to season cooked foods, as well as being eaten as vegetables. Herbs and spices included caper
Caper
Capparis spinosa, the caper bush, is a perennial winter-deciduous species that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers. A caper is also the pickled bud of this plant...
s, coriander
Coriander
Coriander is an annual herb in the family Apiaceae. Coriander is native to southern Europe and North Africa to southwestern Asia. It is a soft, hairless plant growing to tall. The leaves are variable in shape, broadly lobed at the base of the plant, and slender and feathery higher on the...
, cumin
Cumin
Cumin is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, native from the east Mediterranean to India. Its seeds are used in the cuisines of many different cultures, in both whole and ground form.-Etymology:...
and black cumin
Nigella sativa
Nigella sativa is an annual flowering plant, native to south and southwest Asia. It grows to tall, with finely divided, linear leaves. The flowers are delicate, and usually coloured pale blue and white, with five to ten petals. The fruit is a large and inflated capsule composed of three to seven...
, dill
Dill
Dill is a perennial herb. It is the sole species of the genus Anethum, though classified by some botanists in a related genus as Peucedanum graveolens C.B.Clarke.-Growth:...
, dwarf chicory
Chicory
Common chicory, Cichorium intybus, is a somewhat woody, perennial herbaceous plant usually with bright blue flowers, rarely white or pink. Various varieties are cultivated for salad leaves, chicons , or for roots , which are baked, ground, and used as a coffee substitute and additive. It is also...
, hyssop
Hyssop
Hyssop is a genus of about 10-12 species of herbaceous or semi-woody plants in the family Lamiaceae, native from the east Mediterranean to central Asia. They are aromatic, with erect branched stems up to 60 cm long covered with fine hairs at the tips. The leaves are narrow oblong, 2–5 cm...
, marjoram
Marjoram
Marjoram is a somewhat cold-sensitive perennial herb or undershrub with sweet pine and citrus flavours...
, mint
Mentha
Mentha is a genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae . The species are not clearly distinct and estimates of the number of species varies from 13 to 18. Hybridization between some of the species occurs naturally...
, black mustard
Brassica nigra
Brassica nigra is an annual weedy plant cultivated for its seeds, which are commonly used as a spice.-Description:...
, reichardia, saffron
Saffron
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the saffron crocus. Crocus is a genus in the family Iridaceae. Each saffron crocus grows to and bears up to four flowers, each with three vivid crimson stigmas, which are each the distal end of a carpel...
and thyme
Thyme
Thyme is a culinary and medicinal herb of the genus Thymus.-History:Ancient Egyptians used thyme for embalming. The ancient Greeks used it in their baths and burnt it as incense in their temples, believing it was a source of courage...
. Some seasonings were imported, such as myrrh
Myrrh
Myrrh is the aromatic oleoresin of a number of small, thorny tree species of the genus Commiphora, which grow in dry, stony soil. An oleoresin is a natural blend of an essential oil and a resin. Myrrh resin is a natural gum....
, galbanum
Galbanum
Galbanum is an aromatic gum resin, the product of certain umbelliferous Persian plant species, chiefly Ferula gummosa and Ferula rubricaulis. Galbanum-yielding plants grow plentifully on the slopes of the mountain ranges of northern Iran...
, saffron and cinnamon
Cinnamon
Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum that is used in both sweet and savoury foods...
, but their high cost limited their widespread use. Spices for special feasts were imported by the wealthy and royalty from Arabia
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
and India
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
, and were highly valued. These included various types of pepper
Black pepper
Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...
, and ginger
Ginger
Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. It lends its name to its genus and family . Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal....
.
Another seasoning was vinegar
Vinegar
Vinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional...
, which was produced by extra fermentation of new wine. It was used for seasoning foods, pickling
Pickling
Pickling, also known as brining or corning is the process of preserving food by anaerobic fermentation in brine to produce lactic acid, or marinating and storing it in an acid solution, usually vinegar . The resulting food is called a pickle. This procedure gives the food a salty or sour taste...
vegetables, and medicinal purposes.
Storage and preparation
Storing water and food was critical for survival, and particularly, being able to store enough food for use from one harvest to the next. To protect grain from damp and vermin, underground granaries were used for the bulk storage of grain. Families also stored grain, wine and oil in large pottery jars in their houses. When well protected, wheat, barley, legumes and nuts could be kept for long periods. Rainwater from roofs and courtyards was collected in cisterns to supplement natural sources like springs and wells.Fermentation
Fermentation (food)
Fermentation in food processing typically is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohols and carbon dioxide or organic acids using yeasts, bacteria, or a combination thereof, under anaerobic conditions. Fermentation in simple terms is the chemical conversion of sugars into ethanol...
, oil extraction and drying
Drying (food)
Drying is a method of food preservation that works by removing water from the food, which inhibits the growth of microorganisms and hinders quality decay. Drying food using sun and wind to prevent spoilage has been practised since ancient times, and was the earliest form of food curing...
were all ways of converting food into products that could be stored. Feeding crops to animals was also a means of "storage on the hoof" with the animals converting the fodder into meat or milk.
Food was cooked in pots made of clay and placed on earthenware stands built in a horseshoe shape, so that the fire could be lit through the opening, under the pot, or pots were suspended above the fire from tripods.
Cooked food included soups and stews that were a mixture of meat and vegetables. Beans and lentils were likely to have been cooked several times a week. However, vegetables, such as squash, garlic, leek and onions were also eaten uncooked.
Meals
MealMeal
A meal is an instance of eating, specifically one that takes place at a specific time and includes specific, prepared food.Meals occur primarily at homes, restaurants, and cafeterias, but may occur anywhere. Regular meals occur on a daily basis, typically several times a day...
s eaten by the Israelites fell into two categories: daily meals, and festive or ritual meals.
Daily meals
Daily meals were prepared by women. Two daily meals were usually eaten by the family, either in the home or in the field. The first meal was eaten in the late-morning, as a break in the workday, and could include roasted grain, olives, figs or some other fruit, bread, dipped in olive oil or vinegar, or eaten with garlic, onions or black radishes for flavor, and water or wine. A description in the Book of RuthBook of Ruth
The Book of Ruth is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible, Tanakh, or Old Testament. In the Jewish canon the Book of Ruth is included in the third division, or the Writings . In the Christian canon the Book of Ruth is placed between Judges and 1 Samuel...
provides an example of this kind of meal: the harvest workers eat bread, dipped in vinegar, and parched or roasted grain . Agricultural workers, who comprised the largest part of the population, also ate a light meal in the early morning before leaving for their work in the fields .
The second meal was the main meal of the day and was eaten in the evening. In addition to bread, it typically included soup or a stew of vegetables or legumes, served in a common pot into which everyone dipped their bread. Also served from time to time were cheese and fruits such as fresh figs and melon when in season, as well as dried fruits. Water, wine and milk could also accompany the meal.
Small bowls were used for both eating and drinking. Small jugs contained condiments like olive oil, vinegar and sweetners. Wide-mouthed pitchers
Pitcher (container)
A pitcher is a container with a spout used for storing and pouring contents which are liquid in form. Generally a pitcher also has a handle, which makes pouring easier.A ewer is a vase-shaped pitcher, often decorated, with a base and a flaring spout...
held water and milk, while spouted decanter
Decanter
A decanter is a vessel that is used to hold the decantation of a liquid which may contain sediment. Decanters are normally used as serving vessels for wine. Decanters vary in shape and design. They are usually made of an inert material and will hold at least one standard bottle of wine...
s with narrow, ridged necks with built-in strainers held wine.
Festive meals and feasts
Festive meals were held to mark significant occasions, entertain important guests, or as sacrificial or ritual meals. The meal was prepared by both men and women. Meat was always served at these meals and many people participated so that there would be no leftovers that would go to waste. Ritual feasts and banquets in ancient Israel, and the ancient Near East in general, were important for building social relationships and demonstrating status, transacting business and concluding agreements, enlisting divine help, or showing thanks, devotion or propitiation to a deity, and for conveying social instruction. These meals were imbued with significance by the occasion and were a time for entertainment and enjoyment.Festive meals were held only from time to time, but they are the ones recorded by biblical and extra-biblical sources. Many biblical stories are set within the context of a meal, such as the accounts of the food Abraham
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
prepares for his visitors , the stew which Jacob prepares for his father, Isaac, and the Passover meal .
In the story of Abraham hosting the three visitors, Abraham offers cakes, a well prepared young calf, curds, and milk. This meal has similar elements to an earlier meal described in the story of Sinuhe
Story of Sinuhe
The Tale of Sinuhe is considered one of the finest works of Ancient Egyptian literature. It is a narrative set in the aftermath of the death of Pharaoh Amenemhat I, founder of the 12th dynasty of Egypt, in the early 20th century BC. It is likely that it was composed only shortly after this date,...
, an Egyptian nobleman who lived for a time in Canaan around 1900 BCE, at which bread, wine, cooked meat, roast fowl, and dairy products were served.
One of the distinguishing features of the meals of the wealthier social class, as illustrated in the stories of Abraham and Sinuhe, was the more frequent consumption of meat. A description of the provisions for Solomon's kitchen also illustrates this: "Solomon's daily provisions consisted of 30 kor of fine flour and 60 kor of flour, 10 fat oxen, 20 pasture-fed oxen, and 100 sheep and goats, in addition to deer and gazelles, roebucks and fattened geese" . This account describes the provisions that were possible to obtain for those with the resources to purchase them and indicates they were sufficient to provide sumptuous meals for thousands of people.
Another example of a lavish meal celebrating an important occasion is the inauguration of the Temple by Solomon . Similar meals are described regarding Hezekiah's
Hezekiah
Hezekiah was the son of Ahaz and the 14th king of Judah. Edwin Thiele has concluded that his reign was between c. 715 and 686 BC. He is also one of the most prominent kings of Judah mentioned in the Hebrew Bible....
temple consecration and Passover celebration .
In contrast to the simplicity of the daily fare of ordinary people, the cuisine of the royal courts of the ancient Near East was sophisticated, and it is assumed that the dishes served at the table of King Solomon and other Israelite kings were also elaborate. King David had officials who were in charge of wine cellars, olive stores, cattle, olive and fig trees and the royal kitchen was a complex organization.
The kings of Israel are recorded as having displayed an extraordinary measure of royal hospitality, like other kings of the ancient Near East who held elaborate banquets. Solomon’s royal table is described as providing such a variety of foods that the Queen of Sheba is said to have been amazed that the reports of Solomon’s wealth did not exceed what she had seen . Royal entertainment in Israel included music , large numbers of guests , and presumably many servers and cupbearers, though these are not expressly mentioned in the Bible.
Feasts and banquets were important social and political tools throughout Israel’s history, especially in the early years of the Israelite monarchy, when an invitation to the king’s table was important for creating and maintaining political support and was also an important marker of social status and influence.
Regular meals too, developed as expressions of common identity, social unity and communal celebration. By the Roman period, Jewish communities came together at banquets for both food and company and the weekly Sabbath meal was an occasion for families to gather and enjoy both food and company.
Hospitality
Hospitality
Hospitality is the relationship between guest and host, or the act or practice of being hospitable. Specifically, this includes the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers, resorts, membership clubs, conventions, attractions, special events, and other services for travelers...
was a fundamental custom of Israelite society and serving food was integral to the hosting of guests. As in other ancient Near Eastern societies, hospitality for guests, both known and strangers, was motivated by the desire to win divine pleasure and reward in an after-life, and more pragmatically, in the expectation that this kindness would be returned when needed. Additionally, in ancient Israel, the belief that God had delivered Israel from slavery resulted in the social imperative and religious commandment
Mitzvah
The primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
to look after guests and strangers as an act of recognition and gratitude.
The importance of hospitality to the Israelites can be inferred from the texts of the Bible, in numerous instances, including the stories of Abraham hosting the messengers, Gideon’s
Gideon
Gideon was an Israelite judge who appears in the Book of JudgesGideon may also refer to:- Religion :* Gideon , a figure in the Book of Mormon* Gideons International, distributor of copies of the Bible- Media :...
call to leadership , the hospitality of the woman from Zarephath towards the Prophet Elijah and the Shunammite woman towards Elisha , David’s hosting of Mephiboshet, son of Jonathan and Hezekiah’s invitation to the people of the northern kingdom of Israel to celebrate the Passover in Jerusalem .
Meals at which important guests were present were viewed as special occasions, and as such, meat was served. The order in which the guests were served indicated the recognition of the social status of the guest. The choice of meat and dishes indicated the importance of the occasion. The Bible illustrates this in relating how Samuel
Samuel
Samuel is a leader of ancient Israel in the Books of Samuel in the Hebrew Bible. He is also known as a prophet and is mentioned in the Qur'an....
hosted Saul
Saul
-People:Saul is a given/first name in English, the Anglicized form of the Hebrew name Shaul from the Hebrew Bible:* Saul , including people with this given namein the Bible:* Saul , a king of Edom...
, who, seated at the head of the hall is served first with a portion of meat that has been especially reserved for him . Certain parts of the animal, such as the breast and the right thigh, were considered to be the best portions and were reserved for the most honored participants in the meal. Guests were always served before family members. The host would also sit with the guests to encourage them to eat and see to all their needs, as related in the story of Abraham, who waited on his visitors while they ate.
Sacrificial meals
Sacrificial meals were eaten when a portion of a sacrificeKorban
The term offering as found in the Hebrew Bible in relation to the worship of Ancient Israel is mainly represented by the Hebrew noun korban whether for an animal or other offering...
was reserved for the priest
Kohen
A Kohen is the Hebrew word for priest. Jewish Kohens are traditionally believed and halachically required to be of direct patrilineal descent from the Biblical Aaron....
(kohen) or the ordinary Israelite who brought the offering was permitted to eat a portion with his family at a festive meal. The offerings considered “most holy” were eaten by the males of the priests in the court of the Temple sanctuary . The meal was considered to be a part of the priest’s duties. Other offerings could be eaten by the priests with their families in any ritually clean place . The ordinary Israelite had to eat his share within a fixed time, with his family, guests, and any Levite
Levite
In Jewish tradition, a Levite is a member of the Hebrew tribe of Levi. When Joshua led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, the Levites were the only Israelite tribe that received cities but were not allowed to be landowners "because the Lord the God of Israel himself is their inheritance"...
s and strangers that he invited.
Depending on the type of sacrifice, the animals that were brought as sacrifices could be a lamb, kid, goat, ram, calf, bull or cow; bird offerings were doves and turtledoves (pigeons). Of these, the guilt offering
Guilt offering
A guilt offering , also referred to as a trespass offering , is a type of Biblical sacrifice, specifically a sacrifice made as a compensation payment...
(asham) and the communal peace offering
Slaughter offering
A sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible A sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible A sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible (Hebrew zevakh is the slaughter of an animal to God followed by a feast or a meal. This is distinguished from the korban sacrifice, and oblation (Hebrew minchah)....
(shalmei tzibur) were eaten only by the male priests (kohanim). Other offerings, such as the Firstborn offering , could be eaten by the priests and other members of their households, while for the personal peace offering (shalmei yachid) and Thanksgiving offering , the breast and thigh meat were eaten by the priests and other members of their households and the remainder by ordinary Israelites. The Tithe offering could be eaten by anyone and the Passover offering
Korban Pesach
The Passover sacrifice , also known as the "sacrifice of Passover", the "Paschal Lamb" is the sacrifice that the Torah mandates to be brought on the eve of Passover, and eaten on the first night of the holiday with bitter herbs and matzo. According to the Torah, it was first offered on the night of...
was eaten by all who had purchased a share in the sacrifice.
Meal offerings called mincha all consisted primarily of flour and were either completely or partially burned on the altar. Those not entirely burned on the altar were eaten by the priests. Some mincha offerings were fried or baked before being offered. Types of mincha included fine flour (solet) mixed with oil and of which a portion was given to the kohen; flour mixed with oil and fried on a griddle or on a pan; bread called challot mixed with oil and baked in an oven; and wafers (rekikim) smeared with oil baked in an oven.
There were also baked goods, all made of wheat flour and baked in an oven, which were not burned on the altar. These were the twelve unleavened and specially shaped showbread
Showbread
Showbread , in the King James Version: shewbread, in a biblical or Jewish context, refers to the cakes or loaves of bread which were always present on a specially dedicated table, in the Temple in Jerusalem as an offering to God...
s, eaten by the priests after they had been displayed; two loaves of leavened bread prepared for the festival of Shavuot and eaten by the priests; thanksgiving breads, which included leavened bread, unleavened bread, unleavened wafers and scalded loaves, with one of each kind given to the priests and the remainder eaten by the owner and guests; and the unleavened loaves and wafers accompanying the Nazirite’s
Nazirite
In the Hebrew Bible, a nazirite or nazarite, , refers to one who voluntarily took a vow described in . The term "nazirite" comes from the Hebrew word nazir meaning "consecrated" or "separated"...
sacrificial ram, one of each kind given to the priests and the remainder eaten by the Nazirite and guests.
Whole extended families or clans also participated in a sacrifice that was offered on occasions such as the New Moon
Rosh Chodesh
Rosh Chodesh or Rosh ḥodesh is the name for the first day of every month in the Hebrew calendar, marked by the appearance of the new moon. The new moon is marked by the day and hour that the new crescent is observed...
, and it is referred to as both the “sacrifice of days” and a kinship sacrifice. In the early Israelite period, before the centralization of sacrificial offerings as an exclusive part of the Temple services, these sacrifices were offered at various locations. David is described as leaving Saul’s table to participate with his family in Bethlehem
Bethlehem
Bethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank of the Jordan River, near Israel and approximately south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people. It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism...
and Elkanah
Elkanah (husband of Hannah)
Elkanah was, according to the Books of Samuel, the husband of Hannah, and the father of her children including her first, Samuel. Elkanah practised polygamy; his other wife, less favoured but bearing more children, was named Peninnah. The names of Elkanah's other children apart from Samuel are...
goes to Shiloh to participate with his household in the annual sacrifice .
Perhaps the oldest and most important feast celebrated by the Israelites (and later by Jews) is the Passover. The original feast, with its origins in the story of the Exodus, consisted of a sacrificial lamb, bitter herbs and unleavened bread eaten by each family at home. Under the Israelite monarchy, and with the establishment of the Temple in Jerusalem
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
, the sacrifice and celebration of Passover became centralized as one of the three pilgrimage festival. Families who were able to travel to Jerusalem ate the Passover meal together in Jerusalem. Those who could not make the pilgrimage celebrated the holiday by holding a special meal and observing the Feast of Unleavened Bread
Matzo
Matzo or matzah is an unleavened bread traditionally eaten by Jews during the week-long Passover holiday, when eating chametz—bread and other food which is made with leavened grain—is forbidden according to Jewish law. Currently, the most ubiquitous type of Matzo is the traditional Ashkenazic...
.
Forbidden foods
In addition to requiring that certain foods be eaten for sacred purposes, the Israelite diet was shaped by religious practices which prohibited the consumption of certain foods, both in terms of the animals permissible for eatingKosher animals
Kosher animals are those that comply with regulations for Kosher food in Jewish religion. These food regulations form the main aspect of kashrut, and ultimately derive from various passages in the Torah...
, and the manner of their preparation. The cuisine of the Israelites thus differed from that of their neighbors in significant ways. For example, ancient Mesopotamian recipes describe foods cooked with animal blood and milk added to meat stews; this would have been avoided by the ancient Israelites.
Only animals specifically slaughtered for food or for use in the sacrificial service could be eaten. Detailed lists of which animals, birds and fish could be eaten and which were prohibited appear in and , and animal bones found in the archaeological record tend to support this, with some exceptions. For the Israelites, food was one way for self-definition. While it is impossible to know to what extent dietary laws
Kashrut
Kashrut is the set of Jewish dietary laws. Food in accord with halakha is termed kosher in English, from the Ashkenazi pronunciation of the Hebrew term kashér , meaning "fit" Kashrut (also kashruth or kashrus) is the set of Jewish dietary laws. Food in accord with halakha (Jewish law) is termed...
were observed, self-definition is a most likely the basis for certain biblical lists listing different kinds of animals permitted or forbidden for consumption. The taboo against eating
Taboo food and drink
Taboo food and drink are food and beverages which people abstain from consuming for religious, cultural or hygienic reasons. Many food taboos forbid the meat of a particular animal, including mammals, rodents, reptiles, amphibians, bony fish, and crustaceans...
certain animals, particularly the pig, may have developed from the early Iron Age.
Archaeological evidence from various sites shows that the consumption of pork
Pork
Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
, while limited, was higher in the early Iron Age but had mostly disappeared during the later Iron Age. Sites in the highlands and the coastal plains show low levels of pig utilization in the early Iron Age, but on the coastal plain, excavations such as Ekron show a higher consumption of pig; this is usually associated with the arrival of the Philistines. However, even at Philistine sites, pig remains were a small proportion of the bones discovered and decline after the initial period of settlement. This may have been due to unsuitable environmental factors for raising pigs. At archaeological excavations at Mount Ebal
Mount Ebal
Mount Ebal is one of the two mountains in the immediate vicinity of the Palestinian city of Nablus in the West Bank , and forms the northern side of the valley in which Nablus is situated, the southern side being formed by Mount Gerizim...
in Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
, from the period immediately after the Israelite conquest, animal bones discovered were only from animals considered permissible, such as cattle, sheep, goats and deer.
In addition, some taboos did not relate to the source of the food but to the way in which they were prepared, as in the prohibition against boiling a young goat in its mother’s milk (and mentioned in the Bible in three separate instances: , ). Milk and its by-products served as offerings in Near Eastern pagan worship to gods and kings and milk was used in connection with the phenomenon of reproduction, and a goat kid would be cooked in its mother's milk. Thus, the Israelite practice was to avoid an act similar to that carried out by the Canaanites as part of their cult worship
Canaanite religion
Canaanite religion is the name for the group of Ancient Semitic religions practiced by the Canaanites living in the ancient Levant from at least the early Bronze Age through the first centuries of the Common Era....
.
The Israelites, like other ancient peoples, believed that an animal’s blood carried the soul of the animal and therefore should not be consumed . The blood of a slaughtered animal was thus drained before the meat was used and the blood itself was not used as a cooking liquid or drink.
There are no biblical lists containing forbidden plants, so it can be assumed any plant or fruit was permissible as food, and their use limited only by taste or toxicity (for example) and the fulfillment of religious requirements such as the tithe.
External links
- Bread – the Daily Grind in “Canaan and Ancient Israel” - University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and AnthropologyUniversity of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and AnthropologyThe University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, commonly called The Penn Museum, is an archaeology and anthropology museum that is part of the University of Pennsylvania in the University City neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:An internationally renowned...
- Biblical meals - Neot KedumimNeot KedumimNeot Kedumim is a Biblical garden and nature preserve located near Modi'in, mid-way between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Israel. It is a unique endeavor to re-create the physical setting of the Bible....
Biblical Landscape Reserve