I Ate Only Ancient Greek Food for a Week

[@VBirchwood]

This video is kindly sponsored by Pocket Styler! To download Pocket Styler for free straight to your phone visit: nrdc.link/V-Birchwood Thank you soooo much for watching! 🔮✨ As you can see, this video was a massive undertaking, and I'm so pleased with how everything came together. Ancient Greek food is super delicious! Which historical food multiverse do you want to see me take the Thyme Machine to next?

[@jeannegreeneyes1319]

Are you ready to try a Volga Tatar Week?

[@VBirchwood]

@@TPoliti-rv2ey I mentioned olive oil, fish sauce, and vinegar multiple times throughout the video.

[@ahveganpizzabella]

​@@TPoliti-rv2eyGarum as a sauce was more used by Ancient Romans, the Ancient Greeks mostly knew "garo" as a type of fish that they would mostly eat as is, not very often using it to cook a sauce and flavour every meal with as much as the Romans would in the later Empire.. of course it depends how poor or rich the Greeks would be...

[@Nyctophora]

Thank you, this was a really nice and gentle video to watch. No drama. Just a very good experience all round.

[@JohnLeePettimoreIII]

i'm shocked that you didn't have Kykeon.

[@jamesluebben5925]

She attacked the chickpeas with Poseidon's own trident!

[@kimberlyjohns8627]

😂😂😂

[@rudigersimpson]

And yet they didn't have forks back then? They did but hadn't realised their application

[@Ithirahad]

I mean, that was a baking pan and very hard chickpeas. The deck was stacked against our intrepid adventurer. Absent a large mortar and pestle, one must forgive her for calling in a bit of divine assistance :P

[@lefteris9741]

Cringe

[@TastingHistory]

As a fellow solo creator, I feel you! But wow! Your work is fantastic.

[@VBirchwood]

@@TastingHistory thank you!! I love your channel ☺️ a lot of people in the comments have been saying we need a collab, but I live in Europe! 🥺

[@TastingHistory]

@@VBirchwood well I’ll be in Hungary and Italy in February 😁

[@VBirchwood]

@@TastingHistory exciting!! Can I send you a DM on IG?

[@msvoxacious]

…I feel like I’m watching the Avengers of historical cooking KZbin assemble :D Looking forward to y’all collaborating!

[@Ouranorable]

@@VBirchwood The entire comment section is sleeping on this exchange, meanwhile I'm overe here FREAKING OUT :D! I hope you guys can collab, you're both such cool, hardworking and overall wonderful people!

[@trenae77]

Love the call out to Max Miller’s work! (Tasting History) I think he would thoroughly enjoy watching this journey!

[@DG-dy4tv]

You beat me to it!

[@Mej111]

He would’ve used his homemade garum instead of the fish sauce haha

[@heatherjagels2477]

Both such great content creators ❤🎉

[@Chrischi3TutorialLPs]

@@Mej111 Yeah but making your own fish sauce and having it not kill you is not easy.

[@lorih2249]

Agreed

[@changjinius1499]

Being a Greek and someone who studies ancient greek history and literature in highschool, this is great!! I love this so much and it actually showed me how our diets are still very similar to those of our ancient ancestors, even though there's much more variety. Keep up the great work ❤

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you! Really glad you enjoyed the video ☺️

[@stovepipe9232]

Made my own garum and put it on lamb chops. Guaranteed to make you cry

[@kaiserkhan9832]

this girl is tatar turk btw

[@jeanivanjohnson]

​​@@kaiserkhan9832 1. tatars are not turks, they are turkic. that's like calling english people german instead of germanic 2. she's a tatar, so what? what is your point?

[@kaiserkhan9832]

@@jeanivanjohnson turkic is a made up word. just bc english make up words turkish turkic or turk , i wont abstain from using it. the analogy u were looking for was between altaic and turk when it comes to germanic and english. turk and tatar is like austria and germany

[@t.vinters3128]

I'm still expecting the V + Benadette Banner + Max Miller + Townsends inevitable collab.

[@tjf42193]

Yessss they all need to collab

[@bElLyBuTtOnLiNt47]

what a celebration! that would be the most fun crossover also julian eve would be iconic

[@billyghostal]

A potluck party either all of one time period or maybe everyone brings their fav time period. How fun, I wanna be there toooooooooo

[@tjf42193]

@@billyghostal both ideas are great !

[@lindseygray7721]

And Mrs Crocombe!

[@katevenhorst1723]

24:12 I like to imagine the ancient Greek person who created this dish is smiling in their eternal sleep over your reaction to their recipe blowing your mind thousands of years later ❤

[@sarahmanalapan8443]

Love that.

[@Tarikkb]

Greeks, Turks and some balkans still eat 90% if these btw

[@SwedishFix]

I feel like a mortar and pestle would be really helpful for a few of these dishes (blending the soup, cracking the nuts, etc). I'm pretty sure that is something most ancient cultures would have had, at least in some form.

[@VBirchwood]

Indeed! I just didn't have one available and kept forgetting to buy a new one when I had access to a store. The pestle and mortar will make an appearance in the next video I'm sure 😂

[@Kiu_8]

The Greek words for it are ὅλμος, θυεία, and in old Attic ἴγδις. (See Rutherford, New Phryn. p. 252.) I don’t recall much of the Greek sad but I do on the Roman side. The ancient process, as usual, is identified with a special deity in the name Pilumnus. Long after the introduction of mills, this was an indispensable article of domestic furniture. (Plaut. Aul. 1.2, 17; Cato, de Re Rust. 74-76; Colum. de Re Rust. 12.55.) Pliny (Plin. Nat. 18.97) says that it was still in the imperial times used in many parts of Italy instead of relying on a mill. The material was sometimes wood, sometimes stone. In Ancient Greek, a pestle was called a ὕπερος, δοίδυξ, it was three cubits long. These were to be made from straight portions of the trunks or branches of trees, and the thicker and shorter of them was to be hollowed (Hes. l.c.).

[@amyschneidhorst1384]

I second this

[@JustSaralius]

I believe the pestle and mortar is one of the oldest tools humans ever used. In it's simplest form it would just be a handheld rock that you grind with on a big rock/boulder.

[@EarlGreyLattex]

​​@@VBirchwoodFor the crushing/blending you can get a stone grinder like was used in sub Saharan Africa for millennium. Its a grabite slab sloped and then another smaller round granite stone to crush the food items. They turn out smooth as heck and its not as much effort as you might think to use it. And there's also always the mortar and pestle (wooden or stone) mentioned above that's universal

[@aresaurelian]

The spirit of a thousand ancient Greek mothers were with you during this wonderful exhibition of cooking. No wonder we all cried. Love it. Must try.

[@Wee_Catalyst]

💛💛💛

[@user-sc5iv2rp2t]

Or slaves all over the Greek Mediterranean from Massalia to Syria and Ptolemaic Egypt far to the Indus valley and the GrecoBhuddists. It was a world of slaves. One can argue that it was a light form of slavery, where slaves were considered household members but still it was slavery.

[@drconflict629]

@@user-sc5iv2rp2t There's still TONS of slavery going on in the middle east, Africa and Asian. Just sayin'.

[@mustwereallydothis]

Your water may be a bit acidic. Next time you cook beans or legumes, try adding a bit of baking soda to your soaking water. It should solve the long cooking time and dry, tough chickpea problem. If you're concerned about being able to taste the baking soda, you don't need to be. If you only add a ¼ to ½ tsp, you shouldn't be able to taste it, but even if you can, a little splash of vinegar or lemon juice at the very end of cooking will fix it right up.

[@middlemuse]

Accurate. Acid is death when cooking beans. When I figured that out, everything changed.

[@mustwereallydothis]

@middlemuse I wish I had you around to ask when I was trying to figure out why I couldn't cook beans or legumes here. I spent hours on end scrolling through research papers before finally finding what may be the only one addressing the issue of them refusing to soften in acidic water. I'm sure it would have been a lot easier had I know ahead of time what I was searching for, but I had no clue that ph could make such a huge difference.

[@christyogle_thedinnerbell]

Tough, undercooked beans can also happen at higher elevations, in that case a pressure cooker is necessary. Took me 2 years of ruined beans to figure that out when I lived in Montana.

[@katfujioka212]

Yes, great tip! Also add the salt at the last step, it can sometimes toughen up the beans and make them take ages to cook :)

[@mustwereallydothis]

@@christyogle_thedinnerbell I can see why that could happen. Your water could boil before it got hot enough at higher elevations

[@mamazeta906]

I once cried over roasted brussel sprouts, they were so good. The slight caramelization balanced so perfectly with the bitter tang of the sprouts, and the crunch of the roasted leaves added such a nice texture 🤤Side note, dolmades are one of my favorite snack foods and seeing you add them into your menu made me smile!

[@ahveganpizzabella]

Wild brussel sprouts weren't really eaten in Europe until 5th century AD and only cultivated around Medieval Brussels the city from 13th century AD and onwards... A 1000 years after the Ancient Greece era was over

[@delbertdoppler]

About a very emotional meal: I'll skip the details, but when Covid started, I ended up in a situation where I didn't have access to any food and my pantry/cupboard were completely empty (I used to NOT keep any can or frozen food or anything of the sort). It only lasted 2,5 days, so much shorter than some fasting I had done before but this one wasn't a choice. It was unbelievably stressful, especially because I had no idea when I would get access to food again. When I got food again, I prepared a very simple piece of chicken with a cucumber salad. I bawled my eyes out eating it because I was so relieved. It's quite a fuzzy memory, but I do remember thinking I shouldn't have salted the meal because my tears were salty enough, then laughing like a madman while still crying and stuffing my face.

[@EarlGreyLattex]

I'm glad you sound like you're in a better place ❤❤ the pandemic was a truly unprecedented time in human history and you're allowed to have some bad memories due to the isolation and suffering of the time

[@lizajoymorales248]

Please keep -- at the very least -- three days' worth of food and water on hand at all times. It doesn't even have to be food that needs to be cooked; crackers, peanut butter, granola bars, boxed cereal, dried fruit and nuts are all good. If you keep a small camping stove and a canister of gas, you can add ramen, instant soups, instant oatmeal, tea, instant coffee and hot chocolate to the list. That first post-fast meal sounds delicious! As anolther poster has said, you're allowed to have some bad memories; times were bad and you should go easy on yourself. Stay well!

[@Pikawarps]

30:05 I dont think i've ever seen someone enjoy a meal so much in my entire life, Props to you for your skill in the kitchen and your attentiveness to how it makes you feel to eat it.

[@CrazyMattLine]

Absolutely love these videos! Would really love an Aztec or Acient Egypt version if you feel up to them!

[@ellingtongriffin5521]

This would be so interesting!

[@LatinaKamilla]

For the record, I never thought you had help or a team behind your videos. They look very organic and original rather than heavily produced or edited and relatively “simple” in comparison to those with big teams behind them. It’s nice ❤

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you 🙂 I come from a slower film background, so I like to have that mirrored in my own work here!

[@beckstheimpatient4135]

You put this out just as I got back from Greece, and I bought that tea! It's so lovely! Like linden-flower tea with honey, only the honey flavour is built into the plant! Cheese, olives, olive oil, yogurt, and bread. That's all I want to eat now. And fish. With a lot of modern Greek food it can be hard to tell what's an ancient traditional food and what is Ottoman influence, but the staples are just perfect as they are.

[@VBirchwood]

What great timing!! I hope you had a lovely time in Greece, it is such a beautiful place.

[@ahveganpizzabella]

I hate to be the Kassandra of bad tidings, but yogurt is Turkish in origin including the name - described by Greeks as "barbarian nations who ate special kind of acidic milk" while Ancient Greeks just knew regular sour milk and called it "oxygala". Modern Greek food is also very Americanized - potatoes in souvlaki and tomatoes in the "Greek" salad, sunflower seeds chewed with gusto both by Greeks & Anatolians, etc. Bread must be real flatbread, otherwise it aint Greek/Arabic/Ottoman/Turkish/Mediterranean/Indian etc etc 😅

[@yorgokarna6801]

More like the Kassandra of misinformation. Yoghurt dates back 5000 years, long before the Turks, and while the word "yoghurt" is of Turkish etymology that doesn't mean they invented it. That would be like saying the Greeks invented the telephone because it's a Greek word. Greek xynogala, which means "sour milk" which is what yoghurt is, is believed to have been a kind of yoghurt.. Just not the strained variety which we now associate with Greece. Moreover, your reference to the Ancient Greeks calling yoghurt "barbarian nations eating a special kind of acidic milk" is actually a quote from Pliny the Elder who was in fact Roman. Sources show that xynogala was regularly consumed by the ancient Greeks, especially with the addition of honey, which is how modern Greeks still eat their yoghurt. As for your comment that modern Greek food is "Americanised", I won't even bother commenting on that 😂

[@nelumvia]

Greek food has of course retained much of what it was in ancient times, but is also definitelly influenced by all kinds of different cultures! I wont argue with who invented what because honestly, who cares? Food is food and it's meant to be shared! I'd say apart from turkish influences, the people that influenced greek cuisine the most would be slavic people, but that is just my personal observation and I could be wrong. Especially in northern Greece (which is of course much closer to a lot of slavic nations) we have many traditional greek dishes that are heavily influenced by slavic dishes and we share many food triditions!

[@ZZzz-fe9bo]

That is wrong, most of turkish/ottoman food was actually already present when the Greek Byzantines ruled Anatolia before the ottomans or Seljuk Turks even arrived (because it was their native land to the greeks), and when the ottomans conquered Anatolia/modern day turkey they absorbed most of the greek Byzantine foods,dress and music into their own and then after century's we now mistakenly call it ottoman or Turkish but it's actually greek in origin and in some cases ancient greek for the whole music spectrum and food, and of course I'm not saying that the ottomans didn't influence some things to the Greeks of Asia minor or the modern day mainland, but most of stuff of food and cultural dress and music was being used or made by the Greeks of Anatolia and ancient greece before the Turks arrived to Anatolia. The one main thing the ottomans did influence to the Greeks was names of food or surnames, if you notice a lot of modern day greek food actually has Turkic name origin, but that doesn't change the fact that it was already greek for centuries because the Greeks who lived in Anatolia throughout the Byzantine Empire and during the ancient greek city states of Caria, Ionia, Lycia, Ionia, Byzantine and hundreds more were already making that food because they created it not the ottomans, Saying the ottomans influenced the Greeks is extremely wrong and it's actually the other way around that the Greeks influenced the ottomans.

[@shelleyroper588]

V, I can tell in your more recent videos, that you seem much happier. You are glowing and it's so nice to see you're feeling better these days. Thank you for sharing your glow with us. I pray that you stay in a better headspace as we approach the winter. I'm just really happy for you. Also, of course, your videos are SOOOOOOOO entertaining and informative. You do an amazing job! You've also inspired me as a 40 year old woman, to start sewing my own clothes and to start wearing more historical clothes as well. I've always felt out of place in modern clothing, so I have started wearing what I'm more comfortable in, instead of the fashion of the day. ❤ May you be blessed V! ❤

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you! I'm still processing a lot of things these days because I'm still quite actively in c-PTSD recovery, but I'm definitely doing waaaay better than I have been any time in the past 🙂 That's so wonderful to hear that I have inspired you to start sewing your own clothing! Wishing you all the best on the journey ✨

[@baby.goblin]

Are u really? I am too but like I don’t have a successful KZbin channel. I think everything would be better if I did

[@VBirchwood]

@@baby.goblin KZbin channels my size don't make nearly the type of money people think we do. I still live paycheck to paycheck, like many other people in this world. Running a production company alone is expensive and a ton of work, so I rarely take time off. I also don't have any job security. If I don't keep working, I don't make money. I don't have paid time off or sick leave. If I get sick, I don't make money. Some of my income also comes from work outside of KZbin. Being a KZbinr and wearing 50 hats constantly is not glamorous at all. I'm grateful my channel has grown and I keep on making content because it's what I'm passionate about, but it's just important to remember that everything looks perfect from far away.

[@killcounter1587]

As a Greek from Megara, i apreciate the fact that you tried our diet and your honest opinion on that. Thank you very much and i hope you will do more content about ancient Greece and Greece in general

[@agpaok0704]

I grew up in a village of northern Hellas and still kinda had to eat what Greek people always ate in the past. Bread - olives - tahini. Before some decades even, people didn 't have many choices and pretty much ate what it was availiable. And we still keep that like a habbit or tradition in villages. We eat different things at winter, different during summer. Different diet close to sea, different diet on the mountains. I didn 't realise how good this is, until I started studying at university in a big city, where pretty much everything is from supermarket.

[@Danny.._]

asafoetida - the "foetid" part of the word is pronounced like the modern english word fetid, and you'll actually see fetid spelled foetid in older sources because the word fetid comes from the same source as the foetid part of asafoetida: foetida, a latin word meaning stinky. the "asa" part refers to a product made from a certain plant resin because asafoetida is made from the latex of a different plant in a similar way to how that "asa" was made from a plant resin.

[@christopherbrice5473]

that stanky resin

[@gdgyhgrd]

"Foetid" is still the current spelling in the UK (and the Commonwealth?)

[@shieldmaiden8128]

But what is it?

[@Ithirahad]

What was actual asa used for?

[@Danny.._]

@@Ithirahad historically, it was used in traditional medicine in ancient greece and as a chewing gum, and now it's used as a thickener in food and cosmetics

[@GingerellaMia]

Wow, amazing video! I'm gonna try the chicken liver (we eat that in Hungary also), the cabbage salad, prawn soup, honey glazed prawn and the lentil soup. This is so exciting! I always wish your videos would never end haha, but then I remind myself how much hard work goes into making it, with the research, preparation, the actual shooting of it, then editing, making thumbnail etc. We appreciate what you do. I think it's the best channel on youtube.

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you!!

[@deblaria9740]

One time when I cried while eating was at the hospital, I was having various tests made before a surgery and during this time I was forbidden from eating and drinking (even water) for the entire week, after this time they gave me gruel (a type of watery porridge) which was so disgusting and delicious at the same time I cried of happiness because I could finally eat something again.

[@sevenandthelittlestmew]

There’s no way you couldn’t have any water for a week. Humans can’t survive for more than 4 days without water, as it’s crucial for organ function. Literally, your organs would fail without water.

[@andreiadetavora8471]

@@sevenandthelittlestmew if you have an IV you can.

[@sevenandthelittlestmew]

@@andreiadetavora8471 This is true. But it wasn’t stated above and it’s probably a good idea for folks to know that not eating or drinking water for several days can kill you. I mean, we do live in the age of Tide Pods. 🤣

[@alx_gr1]

I had to stay in hospital for 3 days before a surgery, only on IV fluids. No food, no water. After the surgery, my first "meal" was tea and mashed potatoes. Nothing will ever top the taste of that meal!

[@deblaria9740]

@@sevenandthelittlestmew Yeah, I was on IV fluids, sorry I didn't stated that in my previous comment, I'm still forgetting that people lack common sense so thank you for reminding me lmao

[@Wee_Catalyst]

39:30 “No adventure would be complete without a dessert” ❤ True in any multiverse! 😄

[@airelia4051]

I can’t remember the last time I kept checking someone’s KZbin channel to see if a video was released already omgggg. I love your “eating only…” or “dressing as…” videos so much. Thank you!!!!!! Can’t wait to eat while watching this

[@_kyt_]

The ancient Greeks also had pancakes (tiganites)! Served often with honey, but could also have peppers or onions inside (much more of a savory meal than a basic breakfast).

[@Ithirahad]

What the heck is a "pepper" in this context? We use that word for so many things (probably hundreds of fairly distinct savory fruits, most of which could reasonably go in a pancake) that it does not give a very clear picture ^^

[@janeslater8004]

They did not have peppers in ancient greece. Its modern cultivated food

[@axolirvin971]

​@Ithirahad I'm not sure what peppers they mean, but the only food im familiar with that would have been available at the time called pepper would be peppercorns. I believe China and India may have had some peppers, but I'm not positive and I don't think they spread very far. Bell Peppers and various capsaicin-based peppers (Chilli, habonero, hatch Chile, jalapeño) are native to the Americas

[@sese8976]

@@janeslater8004they had long pepper and peppercorns

[@Sincyn241]

Chickpeas will stay firmer if you cook them with salt. If you add a little bit of baking soda, it’s softens them quite a lot.

[@Grizzlox]

The absolute joy and passion that you have for this content is contagious

[@chrisstubblefield5212]

I was just about to say something very like this.

[@HurairaHerbals]

We still eat very much like this in many places around the Mediterranean that had a hellenic influence. In the countryside, or coastal villages. I know many Spanish dishes are reminiscent of this, and Lattakia, where I'm from, as well.

[@RatatoskClarke]

ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? as a classics major and a food nerd I’ve been wanting to do this forever. hell yeah!

[@RatatoskClarke]

love the hellenic recipes, everyday i wish I knew recipes from the mycenean golden period!! or even further back, minoan!

[@Minnehotness]

A meal that made me cry. I had lost my grandmother about ten years prior to attending Thanksgiving at a friend's house. When I had the cornbread dressing (stuffing), the first bite tasted so much like my grandmother's that I instantly began bawling. Then so did everyone at the table when they asked why I was crying. Fifteen plus years later, I'm still chasing that recipe and her coveted sweet potato pie recipe that the rest of the family swears I must have but she took her recipes to the grave.

[@cosmicinvocation3307]

Thank you for this amazing video! I love ancient Greece and Greek mythology, this fuels my passion! 🤍✨

[@lspthrattan]

I'd have a look at some clay pots for cooking grains, instead of the cast iron. Clay pots have been used for thousands of years pretty much everywhere. Keep the cast iron for things cooked with fats but use the pottery for the grains and other water based foods. You'll love the results. PS love this video! Gotta try some of these recipes...😊

[@sarahburke8955]

It's so beautiful to see your joy in this video; I don't know what you've been up to lately, but it seems your spirit is dancing! Thanks for all the resources and inspiration for some fun new (ancient) recipes!

[@SheenaWilson92]

Liver is high in copper, which is a stimulant. That’s why it gave you so much energy. Like caffeine it can be good to avoid having it after lunch because it can disturb sleep.

[@shayestewart5981]

This videa is enough to make me cry with joy much like you cried over your meal every ounce of research the love and care you put into this video to give us the feel/example of what food and the clothes would be like back then even the back drops, the candle lighting and how they would have eaten it i truly appreciate it all thank you

[@z.s7328]

I am extremely happy you uploaded this video. I love this serie so much that I keep going and rewatching over and over the medieval one 😂

[@threadsandpurrs]

This is so fun. I'm also loving the captions of "Thyme Machine" for your multi-verse transport device.

[@BethersO]

My roommate in college (and now my good friend) helped me branch out to trying new foods. I struggle a lot with food related anxiety…so trying new foods was so hard for me and pretty much non existent before her. She is Indian BUT she helped me to try many other cuisines as well. There was one day during our first week of college that her mother had came to our dorm to visit. I had been running around all day and didn’t have a chance to make myself anything so was going to settle for some microwavable Mac and cheese. Her mother is seriously the most loving person I have ever met and immediately stopped me when she seen what I was about to fix myself. She had brought her daughter some homemade fish curry and roti. She said she made enough to share with me as well. I was absolutely starving and the food smelled so good. I also didn’t want to hurt their feelings or make a bad impression on my first week so I actually tried it. My world exploded on the first bite. IT WAS SO GOOD!! I genuinely had a tear in my eye while eating it. I had told them that was the first time I had ever tried something like that….SOMETHING WITH ACTUAL FLAVOR! Her mother continued to bring us traditional Indian dishes for dinner at least once a week. Indian food is now my absolute favorite. I have to have it at least once a week still to this day.

[@AshLG]

I once totally lost it over grilled oysters with lemon and Gruyère. In Britain people only really eat oysters raw (which is… an experience) so I assumed I didn’t like them, but they’re SO GOOD cooked

[@kaylarotondi1293]

we eat them raw in usa too. i think that’s normal everywhere ?

[@Justanotherconsumer]

⁠@@kaylarotondi1293we cook them too. Eating them raw has this whole Vibrio vulnificus problem, which is pretty well understood but… I mean, unless you find eating them raw amazing, better to cook them. I don’t care much for them either way.

[@CAP198462]

I too appreciate the shout out to Max Miller. I made some of the ancient “Greek” recipes from his book, the Spartan broth and Kykeon to be precise. Couldn’t find a source for clean and safe animal blood so I used organic beet juice. I don’t think it hurt anything.

[@artawhirler]

The Spartans didn't have a source for "clean and safe" animal blood either - but hey, they didn't let that stop them! 😅

[@firetamer]

@@artawhirler I would dare say the animals kept it safe within their bodies. Getting the blood harvested safely and without dirtying it, however...

[@dogmaticpyrrhonist543]

Frequently watch his stuff. The last one I did was the honey glazed mushrooms that Claudius liked. The trick is usually finding the ingredients, like the barely flour referenced here, or whole emer wheat kernels I've been searching for.

[@CAP198462]

@@artawhirler okay, short of bleeding stray animals and pets 🤦‍♂️; Where would you suggest getting 2 cups of animal blood in a city?

[@torpor8652]

@@CAP198462 From a butcher shop. Some of them will have it on request. Might need to order it a few days before

[@MissMelanieMoss]

I cried and felt totally embarrassed because I was visiting my boyfriend’s family in Sparta for the first time. It was the most amazing meal, a giant amount of food, the olives were the most insane you can ever imagine from their yard, the chicken they slaughtered the same day, the lemons in Sparta are so special… idk I ate so many other things too but everything was from their home. Crazy good. You should try trahana sometime, it’s an Ancient Greek porridge still eaten a lot (I do weekly). It’s barley flour mixed with fermented milk/yogurt and traditionally dried out in the sun, consistency of cous cous sort of. I think your fish dolmades dish was missing avgolemono sauce, which might not be ancient though but would be good. Loved the video and commitment!! I also love mountain tea :) it’s good for stomach aches. I lived with a Greek family for 4 years and learned a lot of cooking and very traditional recipes and it’s basically what I eat every night lol.

[@musiclistsareus1029]

I love your sense of humor. I think you are delightful

[@LondonPower]

I grew up with ancient Greek food in a small village in Greece with grandparents who were refugees from Pontus in Asia Minor who spoke ancient Greek, i.e. the language of Homer, while today in Greece they speak modern Greek! The food was mainly dairy products and the sight of meat was very rare! many salads, pasta, snails, bread like pizzas in the pan, olives, halva, cheese, milk, yogurt, eggs, corn, potatoes...

[@ameiless]

I went home after finals week as an art student. I was insanely exhausted and got very sick cause body was like, “oh you wanna rest now? Lol nah”. My mama made me her homemade cheesy bacon potato soup and I literally started sobbing lol

[@alyseandrews1066]

My tear-filled meal, my first meal postpartum with my oldest. It was pancakes with warm strawberry syrup. It was a long and grueling labour, 2 full days of popsicles and water. It wasn't a culinary masterpiece, it was hospital cafeteria pancakes, but wow was it EXACTLY what I needed in that moment!

[@Blue-s8v]

The honeyed pear reminds me of the quince jam I grew up with, called dulce de membrillo in Spanish. So interesting to associate that dish with Ancient Greece. And citron is used in Jewish ritual for the holiday of sukkot, which is coming up soon. It makes a tasty jelly as well

[@jillsarah7356]

Is citron another name for etrog?

[@Blue-s8v]

@@jillsarah7356 yup

[@anotheryoutuberperson38]

Not surprising. Hadrian was a Roman Emperor who was from Iberia. He left his structures in Antalya, Turkey to northern England because the Romans were the ruling power in both regions. It's basically the Roman Empire being the link here.

[@tomsmith01SF]

Huge fan of Max Miller. This young woman is super charming and I kind of love her production aesthetic. Blowing out the candles to transition out was super cool. Also, chicken livers... Good call.

[@brittsheree85]

You ought to get a mortar and pestle. They've been around for a really long time are used in many different cultures. That might help you with your crushing or pureeing of the meals you create. Love your videos!!!!

[@AthanasiosJapan]

My recommendation for Greek dessert is itrion, today known as pasteli. It is a combination of sesame and honey. Simple, but great. Also, in Ancient Greece, it was rare to eat alone. Usually people had guests and were eating together. And of course drinking. Combine good food, good drink, good music and philosophic discussions.

[@tayler6853]

This video was so well done! You have a very fun yet intellectual aura about you and are such an interesting woman. Thank you for your videos and the work that you put into them. As a Sicilian and lover of Ancient History, I was particularly fond of this video and am glad that I came across it. Because of this, sometimes, I am now sharing these meals and their names with others. I am also now subscribed and am looking forward to more! Much love to you, dear! :)

[@VBirchwood]

@@tayler6853 thank you!! 🥰

[@Jinxjarr]

Absolutely love this series you do, it brings me such comfort!!

[@lexicaprise1216]

The orange suits you so well! Really pretty and makes your features pop 😊

[@alexander_yoko]

As a Romanian who also has Greek origins I love this video! I'll definitely try some of these!

[@Olive-765]

The flavor profile really aligned with what you like. How fortuitous!

[@Janibek35]

Funny, finding another Tatar (Ukraine, not Russia) who's quite interested in ancient Greek culture. Anyways, I like your way of presenting this topic. It's bound to get more people interested. Thanks for sharing!

[@GTSKirin]

Fantastic Video, the 'silly' little frame-narrative made the whole journey even more enjoyable to watch; and I loved the Hitchhiker's Guide reference.

[@MartinAhlman]

Barley... Makes bread, porridge, beer even! We still use barley in the Nordics. It's tasty and useful! Barley dumplings is one example. A grey, boiled ball that sticks to your mouth, and we love it!

[@biteme1167]

I add barley to my homemade chicken soup ( boil the carcase of a roat chicken dinner for a day add spices an oinion and celery. Remove carcass strip off the remaining meat, toss the bones ) add some rice and barley. Best soup you'll ever eat!

[@dimitra_k]

I'm Greek and recently I've been thinking a lot about how different traditional greek food must be now from what it once was! Very excited to delve into this video

[@sagaki_]

I love this series so much, it's very comforting :) I would love to see some Old Slavic recipes represented!!

[@emilyweaver]

i have made lentil soup (fakes) that made me cry. It was always my order of choice (with pita bread) when my grandparents took me out to lunch/dinner as a kid at greek restaurants in Seattle. Such a comfort food and so delicious

[@topquark22]

This is a great series! I have been deliberately pausing this video, and only watching one day at a time for an entire week! It is only Thursday, and I can't wait to see what you had tomorrow.

[@steviegallagher1801]

i have had many meals that have brought me to tears but one in particular sticks out in my mind. it was a mushroom steak absolutely bathed in butter, seared beautifully. i cant even remember what it was served with, the mushroom eclipsed everything else, but i know the sides were delicious. it was also my first restaurant date with my girlfriend, and the first time i had been out to eat since pandemic lockdowns, so im sure that contributed. but i still think about that mushroom lovingly

[@WerewolfofEpicness]

where was this?? I LOVE mushrooms. if its on the east coast lmk

[@steviegallagher1801]

@WerewolfofEpicness new orleans unfortunately! but if youre ever in town, its a restaurant called coquette

[@WerewolfofEpicness]

@@steviegallagher1801 actually do need to visit there thank you 🙏

[@Hope_Boat]

Very interesting and entertaining. As an Egyptiote (Greek from Egypt) I would like to add that the ancientGreek cities where dispersed over huge distances from the coast of Spain to the Indus river. Greeks recipes varied a lot depending on the availability of ingredients and influences from other local people. In Egypt the poor Greeks would rather eat molohia soup on a daily basis with dates fruits. Of course there were a lot of commercial exchanges between greek cities including food and spices.

[@renskedollekamp6392]

The thyme jokes are top tier 😂

[@VBirchwood]

I had too much thyme on my hands! 😂

[@trenae77]

Thyme is what you make of it; and you made a very Thymely masterpiece😊

[@Turquerina]

You could say they were thymeless.

[@Wee_Catalyst]

❤❤❤

[@simolator]

don't you feed my CHRONic pun syndrome

[@ANTOCOOKINGART]

I just know that the traditional Greek make up is so beautiful and the food is so delicious that it makes me feel excited happy to follow you ❤❤

[@zaarkhananal7165]

Since you love to cook ancient recipes, I recommend that you invest in a mortar and pestle as well as a grainmill. Those two items were as essential in the ancient kitchen as a blender, and food processor is in the modern kitchen. The mortar and pestle would have been good for mashing up the chickpeas. If you want to make something like hummus in the way of the ancients, then the grainmill would be a better option. I once tried making hummus with my mortar and pestle, and it was very tasking, and the result was not all that pleasing. Asafoetida is pronounced asafetida because the ancients believed it to have the smell of something extremely foul and fetid. Only enough, though, it was also thought to be an afrodesiac, like garlic. Lol. I once made gravy in a cast iron pot, and while it tasted delicious, it had a dark grey color and look like one of Sweeny Todd's Mrs Lovett's horrid creations. You may want to invest in clay cookware. However, you should know that unglazed clay cookware must be stored in an open-air environment as the clay is highly absorbent to moisture in the air and will mildew if stored in a closed cupboard. The dish that made me want to cry was a Jamaican blackened cod fish that my mom made several years ago. My mother's cooking is usually pretty good, although sometimes she likes to perform strange experiments. That fish though was literally the best thing she ever made, and when I told her so she was so happy she actually cried. I wanted to cry, but didn't because I'm not much of a cryer. However, my mom did, in fact, cry from happiness because of how much I enjoyed the meal. 😀 Lol, the soul joke reminded me of my mom's jokes.

[@GreekTurkey]

13:11 bookmarking Cabbage Made the Athenian Way with Olympic Marinated Skewers because those recipes look delicious

[@russellwilliams2898]

Thanks! You and your content makes me happy ☺

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you too!

[@BT4282]

I wonder if the barley bread dipped in wine would have been far less alcoholic than we might imagine today. IIRC Greek and Roman wine, especially the cheaper stuff like that issued as rations to soldiers, was much more like vinegar, with a relatively low alcohol content and a noted acidity. I imagine that vinegar like flavour would have been a nice way to soften stale barley bread and give it a less dull flavour when breaking fast in the morning. Understand not wanting to consume alcohol, but still interesting to consider whether substituting wine with watered down vinegar or balsamic could have been an interesting substitute.

[@rosalobo4968]

I would love for you to collab with Max from Tasting History one day for this series like you make him a toga and he sends you a bottle of home made garum 🤩

[@hetherpickwell5174]

I came here to say the same thing!!

[@gggallagher2656]

The meal that made me cry was on a Lufthansa flight from Germany back to the states. It was pumpkin and mushroom ravioli, with a little wheel of brie, a side salad, a small bun and butter, and a little square of black forest cake. The real kicker was the ravioli though. I haven't stopped dreaming about it since I had it, and I've been sooooo tempted to take a Lufthansa flight again just to get the opportunity to have it. Most expensive meal I've ever had but oh man it was good.

[@Ater_Draco]

I'm embarrassingly early. Normally, I'm unfashionably late ❤❤

[@VBirchwood]

It's fun to switch it up sometimes! 😁

[@Dallas1942]

I love the concept of this video, I love Ancient Greece, and the food of that region and period. I'm a Classical History specialist and this stuff is very near and dear to my heart. You're clearly a talented chef, and I really enjoyed seeing how you interpreted the research you did to create some authentic, yet practical recipes. I have also worked as a professional chef for many years, and I really appreciate everything you've done, and it has inspired me to explore new culinary adventures. I love your historical fashions as well. Keep up the great work, V!

[@giuse6005]

I've always wanted to do the same thing with ancient Rome, so thank you because your beatiful videos gave me that little push i needed since I've always felt a little bit insecure abt it

[@leon300_79]

Love this video! I’m a gamer and one of my favorite games is Assassin’s Creed Odyssey which takes place in Ancient Greece. I was addicted to it, the landmarks, food they were eating, clothing, and everything the NPC’s were doing. It was nice to see a real life video of what they ate back in this time.

[@Rainbow41_8]

I love your historical cooking videos!! So much fun! Are there any recipes from this video or previous videos that you will continue to cook because you liked them so much? I have a feeling the honey prawns will be one!

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you!! Definitely the honey-glazed prawns. I have eaten them many years ago, but they weren't nearly as good as these ones I made. Likely also the cabbage salad, the liver "skewers", and I would gladly make the honeyed pears again, but perhaps paired up with some type of crumble.

[@mildlydazed9608]

I've watched Tasting History for a few years this is a perfect addition to my sub box! Historical foods and recreating it is just an amazing thing for inspiration of new recipes.

[@miippi]

Have you done one of these weeks where you would eat only traditional tatar foods? You did mention that the viking food was somewhat similar, but as someone with surving cultural heritage from the times of the vikings, the cultural foods from eastern countries tended to differ slightly.

[@VBirchwood]

I'd like to do a historical Volga Tatar food week, but the research is a lot harder to dig up so it is probably something for much further down the line. There are some similarities with Viking food like for instance the ayran (skyr with water) drink I made, as well as the lamb and red meat emphasis, but the foods are also quite different.

[@heatherunicorn-sparkles1724]

I really like chicken liver and need to cook it more. Thanks for the idea. Also, simple foods focusing on each ingredient are the best and most delicious. Great video.

[@KikiKiki-j4p]

You should try cooking them Moroccan style and Brazilian style. So so good. And mix it with chicken hearts.

[@lexidiusBS]

Stating this unapologetically with my whole chest: when you mentioned the honey prawn sauce caramelizing in the pan like that, I'm pretty sure the thought of those two textures together just made me moan like a Dionysian hedonist.

[@TheWhiteGyrfalcon]

If i recall from my time studying Classics, only a few times a year would Greek or Roman people eat red meat, only on special religious holidays when a bull or ram was sacrificed to a deity. The people didn't waste the carcass, usually a whole feast was prepared by the entire village/town and then shared with all free peoples. Part of the religious festivities

[@sydneystudds]

I would love to see you do a video like this with ancient Italian food/roman food. Because tomatoes didn't exist there until they went to the americas. It would be interesting to see this kind of cuisine

[@EmL-kg5gn]

You’ve definitely persuaded me to try some of these recipes one day! It’s nice to see you have so much energy 💕

[@lisakilmer2667]

Another charming video! Your voice-overs are both clever and delightful. I appreciate all the puns. Your one-woman "team" does an excellent job.

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you so much!

[@bethknapp4935]

I absolutely love this series!! Thank you for all of the time and work that you put in to make such beautiful videos. And now I'm craving lentils and cabbage! I am totally going to try some of these recipes. ❤

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy the lentils and cabbage :)

[@Kiu_8]

Guuuuuurl, all of those outfits great! I once had a phase where I read all about these garments and I particularly love the differences between what the Athenians and the Spartans did, a worthy highlight for me is the ornamentations in the Athenian crafts, super colorful and vibrant with many natural dyes/pigments such as saffron for yellow, crocus, the famous royal purple from crushed mollusks, indigo from the indigofera plant, etc. The chiton-ot stain the dresses with the prawns is to loom further away from them, wool-d you have done any different, it would’ve been a tragedy in play, I hope you had kandys for dessert, hue deserve it!

[@MrGWolf-ih6me]

Such a fun video thank you !! Πολλή αγάπη ❤❤

[@jant4741]

Chicken liver is super nutritious & a good eat! (It’s a thing in Japanese Yakitori shops) Cabbage nutritious. Excellent eats! 👍

[@cheekymunki6]

These weeks are my absolute favourite type of content. Thank you so much for the effort you go to! 🙏

[@dianesmigelski5804]

The recipes seemed great and I will definitely try them! I’m another liver lover. 😂 I will try this dish. It all looked great actually! I have barley in my cupboard now. I would have loved the grape leaves dish. I bet cod would have been nice with the barley and then the lovely goat’s yogurt sauce on top. I love porridge made with barley as well as adding into the soup for a thickener. Your soups looks delicious! So far this is my favorite “food week” out of the series! Everything looked so beautiful I was wanting bites as you ate! I will definitely try many of the dishes. This was such a great week. I was wondering if the grain day is what made you not feel as well during the week. You mentioned being tired. You had barley twice before you mentioned it. Just a thought! Thank you so much V! I enjoyed watching.

[@knownothing5518]

It just shows how universal a lot of human experiences are. We take what we have, try to make something of it that we enjoy and works well as a dish. And we all do it and have done so for so long, I love it! Food offers so many opportunities to connect us!

[@tarobarf]

Omg! I'm early to this video which means you will see this comment which means I must tell you how much I admire you! You have quickly become one of my favourite youtube channels! Xxxx I love how unique and unquestionably you, you are!

[@VBirchwood]

Ahhh thank you so so much for such a lovely comment! Much love ✨❤️

[@rivanvking]

There's a certain peace I feel watching your videos and I needed some peace today. Thank you for being such an enjoyable part of my day, V! Also I'm so very excited for your poetry book (as a poet myself)💖

[@channelbill2933]

Content suggestion. Sweden 1952, outdoor and indoor. You can still access Trangia cook sets which were released around this time, so you can cook dinner outdoors on the actual pots and pans dating from 1952. This may allow you to enjoy and create some outdoor content. But, if you eat the food for a month, they also cooked food indoors so it would not be all outdoors. The utensils are also still available. Also as it is coming into winter in the Northern Hemisphere, you could make yourself some nice outdoor warm clothes or a nice coat in the style of the 1950s Swedish outdoor lady adventurer for the 2024 Winter season. People collect the Trangia cooksets, someone may offer to loan you a set, with the period utensils, to create the content. I like this idea because it is long enough ago in the middle of last century, but you can still find real examples of what they used and maybe some living people who can relate their real culinary experiences. However, I wont be offended if it is ignored, or just creates some ideas instead of being turned into reality.

[@EmilySusan61685]

The way I look forward in patient anticipation...because obviously I know you cannot rush perfection. You content brings me immense comfort and if I can learn something whilst indulging even better. Thank you for creating something I've always wanted to learn more about. My love for all things historic is immediately reignited. I'm 37, and I hope there is never a day in my life I am not learning and retaining something new. 🖤

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you so much for such a lovely comment!

[@WillMowass]

That looked like a grand time travel escapade. Thanks for sharing.

[@Burning_Dwarf]

Asafoetida is an amazing subsitute for garlic, for those (like me) allergic to plants of the allium family

[@hallyuniverse]

8:02 not entirely accurate, aubergines are not indigenous to the Americas. They're originally from the Old World, likely Africa or South Asia (or both). They were in fact cultivated in ancient Greek times in the Mediterranean, but it was mainly a crop grown by Arabs and the Jewish, so there was no Greek name for it despite it exiting in at the same time and in proximity to ancient Greece.

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you :) a few people left comments about this as well.

[@kalakatana503]

Most legumes you need to soak for at least 24 hours, especially garbanzo beans! If you think your beans are pretty old you can put a little baking soda in the soaking water. It also really helps to put them in a blender without the blade and blitz with some water just to get the skins off; you can also roll them with your hands and a bowl of water to get the skins off which will make them easier to mash For asafoetida just use a pinch; it's pretty pungent and is used almost as a skunky onion flavor, especially in Indian cooking.

[@mikesphat]

the shot of you in blue with the blue background... omg radiating pure beauty :)