The concept of street food was already popular in ancient Greece and Rome. In the streets of Hellas, the food vendors sold mainly small fried or dried fish.
In Rome it was much more developed. There were even temples resembling modern ones. bary. They were called thermopolium and they were cheap eateries serving dishes from large cauldrons, similar to today’s bain-marie. They operated around the clock and popularly served dishes made from chickpeas, lentils, fish, as well as baked goods and cold drinks.
Local to However, they did not have a particularly good reputation because they often attracted suspicious people. They were mainly eaten by people from lower social classes who did not have a place to prepare meals at home. Often, in the back there was a kind of “gambling room” where gambling was illegally practiced.
In medieval Europe, street food continued to develop. Popular snacks included: pasties i preclebut also numerous sweet baked goods, which were often sold from mobile ovens at markets and in city streets. Apart from traditional baked goods, bakers often prepared other quick dishes that could be eaten on the spot or taken away. Many people also brought to the baker own meatwhich he wrapped in dough and baked for a small fee.
Precle They were particularly popular on Lent days, as the Catholic Church liked the extremely simple medieval recipe for this baking, consisting only of water, flour and salt.
In cities such as London there were also medieval the equivalent of today’s takeaway restaurants. They were especially popular among the poorer city dwellers who did not have their own stoves or kitchen tools, and these establishments served as a kind of “drive-thru”. They offered fast and cheap foodand their customers usually ate on the street or took meals home.
Sellers of popular meat pies have gained over time bad reputation. In many cases they used spoiled meat or reheated old, unsold products. As a result, people working in convenience stores and street vendors selling pasties were often perceived as dishonest, and their products were very unreliable in terms of quality. Often, city authorities even tried to limit their activitiesintroducing strict regulations.
But street food wasn’t limited to Europe. Before European colonizers arrived, in the area that is now Mexico Aztekowie also had their own forms of this type of cuisine. One of the popular dishes was atolls – a corn-based gruel that was eaten as a quick meal, especially by working and traveling people.
Another popular snack was tamalesor stuffed corn dough. Customers had a choice over 50 different fillingsincluding meat, vegetables, cheese, fruit, and even insects. The whole thing was cooked wrapped in corn leaves, so it could be conveniently taken on a journey. It was the main dish of Aztec travelers and soldiers, and is estimated to have first appeared between 8000a 5000 p.n.e.
Today, street food looks completely different than it used to. We no longer fear that a dishonest vendor will put rotten meat in our dish, and street food itself has evolved, gaining a more modern style and greater variety. Its basic idea – a quick, convenient meal – remains unchanged. It still meets the needs of busy city dwellers around the world, just as it did hundreds of years ago.
Source: geekweek.interia.pl
