For those of us who live in modern times, preserving food by putting it in the refrigerator is a common thing that many people do, so that the quality of food will be maintained, keep it fresh and fit for consumption for a long time, and prevent the growth of microbes that can make food rot.
The modern methods we know today for food preservation are canning, pasteurization, freezing, irradiation, chemical addition, etc. Then, have you ever thought about how ancient people could preserve food, when electricity had not been invented or technology had not yet developed?
Some of the ancient methods that are still practiced today include fermentation, drying, salting, smoking. The only one possible thing that is no longer used is food storage in underground pits, interestingly this method can make food last for thousands of years, believe you?
photo by Nordic Food Lab/Copenhagen University
Photo by bazonka/Wikimedia commons
The discovery of 500 ancient butter blocks found buried in muddy soil in Ireland and Scotland. This butter is thought to have been made approximately 5 thousand years ago, in the 18th century. Based on scientific theory, microbial growth in butter is inhibited when it is buried in a peat swamp. This is because this type of soil has minimal acid and oxygen. Even stored butter can last up to thousands of years. But for current consumption, it may not be recommended.
To get meat, the ancients had to hunt first, the meat was preserved by fumigation technic. For foods such as milk, it is usually preserved by fermentation into cheese. For vegetables it is usually dried or making as pickled. The following is an explanation of ancient food preservation techniques that we might still be able to practice.
• Fumigation, the usual smoked foods are meat and fish. Smoking is done by placing food on a fire that is as far apart as possible by hanging it, then smoking it from below without bringing it close to the fire. The smoke used can be in the form of smoke from burning various types of wood or coconut shells. The smell of smoking will vary depending on the type of fuel used. Smoke is formed due to the interaction of water vapor, gas and small particles in the air. Before smoking, meat or fish are usually soaked in salt water. The fire must be maintained properly so that all parts of the food are exposed to smoke and left for days. This smoking technique will dry out the food and make it more durable because microorganisms cannot breed in it.
• Drying. Sunlight is an abundant source of energy and can be found anywhere, so that food preservation by drying it using sunlight is commonly used by people from all over the world. Food ingredients that are commonly dried include fish, fruit, vegetables and meat. This technique is done to remove water by evaporation. Drying is usually done by drying in the sun, hot air, or through a heated surface. This drying will inhibit the growth of bacteria, yeast, and mold by removing the water. The characteristics of dried food ingredients will change such as shrinking in size, wrinkled and hard texture or more chewy and darker in color. However, based on research results, drying does not reduce the nutrients contained by these food ingredients.
• Salting. Commonly salted foods include meat, fish, eggs and fruits. Salt is an effective preservative, because the function of salt can remove moisture from food. The meat is covered in large amounts of salt and the salt starts to draw moisture from the food cells and bacteria in the food. Overall salting techniques aim to protect food by drawing water out of the food, preventing bacteria from growing that will spoil the food.
• Fermentation, is a natural process by which microorganisms such as yeast and bacteria convert carbohydrates such as starch and sugar into alcohol or acids. The alcohol or acid will act as a natural preservative and give fermented foods a distinctive taste and chewiness. In modern research it has been found that the fermentation process also promotes the growth of beneficial bacteria, known as probiotics. There are many fermented foods such as tape, kimchi, yogurt, kefir, tempeh, cheese, etc.
So... are ancient preservation methods still practiced relatively today?
the answer is Yes, the ancient preservation techniques above are still used by many food industries or home to preserve food. For example, making sausages in China, making Se'i meat in West Sumatra-Indonesia using smoking techniques. Making kimchi, tempeh, etc. using fermentation techniques. Making salted eggs using salting techniques, and other food processing that still use ancient techniques.[]
