PR-2237IRE Ancient Rome

TEACHERS
N OTE
Roman Life – Food
The great vineyards of France were first planted by the Roman occupation forces.
Wine was often diluted with water as drinking pure wine was thought to be barbaric. It was also
added to water to purify it, used as an antiseptic on wounds and used to preserve food. Though they
used honey, the Romans didn’t have sugar, so sweet wine was a valued part of their diet.
Poor people drank low-quality wine called ‘acetum’. They had milk but it was thought to be an uncivilised
drink, fit only for making cheese or for medicinal purposes.
Storing wine was a problem until corks were used in the later years of the Empire. Lead or wax was used to seal
the wine storage jars but often air leaked in and the wine became vinegary. Though cider and beer were drunk
in parts of the Empire, wine was the popular drink in Rome. It was so popular that Roman writer Marcus Cato
even suggested that working slaves on farms should be issued with it.
Meals in rich households included shellfish, edible snails, fish, roasted duck or chicken, game birds like pheasants,
dormice cooked in honey and even parrots and ostriches from North Africa. Pork, ham and venison were also
popular. Olives, grapes, apricots, figs, dates, cherries and plums were just some of a huge range of fruits. An
excavated rubbish dump near Rome revealed how important olives were to the Romans – it contained around
forty million pots used for carrying olive oil.
Both freshwater and saltwater fish were served, with many different recipes for mullet, mackerel, tuna etc. Fish
were cooked in spicy sauces and oysters were a delicacy.
As there were no refrigerators the Romans had problems keeping fish or meat fresh. Ice cubes were used but only
the wealthy could afford the complicated systems required.
In the days of the Republic, only men could attend formal dinners arranged to entertain guests but in later
imperial times, the years when emperors ruled, women often dined with men on such occasions.
Activity Suggestion
Viewing Sample
Follow the steps in this procedure and make this dessert of stuffed dates eaten by wealthy Romans.
1. Mix together chopped-up apple and crushed nuts with breadcrumbs or cake crumbs.
2. Add small amounts of cinnamon or nutmeg.
3. Add a small quantity of fruit juice and mash into a paste.
4. Cut off the top of the dates and take out the stones.
5. Push in the mashed filling with a knife or spoon. Enjoy your meal!
– 40 – Ancient Rome Prim-Ed Publishing www.prim-ed.com