[Sca-cooks] pre-Columbian foods

[Ana Valdés]

Think about snakes, guinea pigs and turkeys, corn and tomatoes and 
potatoes plus chilipeppers.
The precolumbians had not any tame cattle (the domestic cattle was 
introduced by the Spaniards in the 16th Century and the cattle never 
thrived in the North of South America. The cattle exploded in Argentina 
and Uruguay, the southern part of the continent, who was almost empty of 
people. The Inca culture and empire comprehended the modern countries of 
Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. In Paraguay the indians were Guarani indians 
and they were hunters and gatherers, they had not developed the 
sophisticated agricultural empires of the Incan.
The Mexicans were divided in several empires of different dimensions. 
And the food was definitively different between the "beans" and "corn" 
cultures and the "potatoes" cultures.
Ana

Christine Seelye-King wrote:

>As a preliminary to our usual talk of Thanksgiving fare, I thought I'd float
>this one.  A lady in our household is hosting a pot-luck dinner next Friday
>night, and the theme is Pre-Columbian Foods (no insects or arachnids,
>please).  We are thinking foods that were here when the Westerners got to
>land.  She hasn't specified a continent, although we have done South America
>as it's own dinner theme a few years ago.  So, I suppose it could be either
>what the Spaniards found when they arrived in more southern climes, or what
>the Pilgrims were introduced to when they landed on the northern shores.
>I did a websearch on 'pre-Columbian food'expecting to find lots of trendy
>restaurants sauteeing grasshoppers, but got a big fat nothing.  I did nab a
>lunch and dinner menu from a poster from the Food and Feasts list, which has
>a boat-load of really great sounding dishes listed out for ideas.  We've
>also been talking about a buffalo roast, as Ted Turner has opened his
>"Montana Grille" right across the street from where my lord works, and is
>also supplying buffalo to the local Farmer's Market now.  (I know, that is
>really a prarie food and not something the folks just landing in coastal
>areas would have had, but Uncle Ted provides, so we take advantage of
>that...)
>	Any thoughts?
>	Christianna
>
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