On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 474

enemiesandattractfriendswithcolors,tastes,
and scents, all chemical inventions that have
shapedourideasofbeautyanddeliciousness.
And they protect themselves from the
common chemical stresses of living with
substancesthatprotectusaswell.Sowhenwe
eat vegetables and fruits and grains and
spices,weeatthefoodsthatmadeuspossible,
and that opened our life to a kaleidoscopic
worldofsensationanddelight.
Humanbeingshavealwaysbeenplant
eaters.Foramillionyearsandmore,our
omnivorousancestorsforagedandlivedona
widerangeofwildfruits,leaves,andseeds.
Beginningaround10,000yearsagothey
domesticatedafewgrains,seedlegumes,and
tubers,whichareamongtherichestsourcesof
energyandproteinintheplantworld,andcan
begrownandstoredinlargequantities.This
controloverthefoodsupplymadeitpossible
formanypeopletobefedreliablyfroma
smallpatchofland:socultivationofthe


fieldsledtosettlement,thefirstcities,and
cultivationofthehumanmind.Ontheother
hand,agriculturedrasticallyreducedthe
varietyofplantfoodsinthehumandiet.
Millennialater,industrializationreducedit
evenfurther.Fruitsandvegetablesbecame
accessory,evenmarginalfoodsinthemodern

Westerndiet.Onlyrecentlyhavewebegunto
understandhowthehumanbodystilldepends
foritslong-termhealthonavariousdietrich
infruitsandvegetables,herbsandspices.
Happily,moderntechnologiesnowgiveus
unprecedentedaccesstotheworld’s
cornucopiaofedibleplants.Thetimeisripe
toexplorethisfascinating—andstill
evolving—legacyofnaturalandhuman
inventiveness.
Thischapterisageneralintroductionto
thefoodsthatweobtainfromplants.Because
therearesomanyofthem,particularfruits
andvegetables,herbsandspicesaredescribed
insubsequentchapters.Foodsderivedfrom