Historical story

Food Preservation in Ancient Egypt:How Did It Happen?

Food processing scenes in Egypt (detail of wall painting from the tomb of Ramesses III)

How food preservation took place in Ancient Egypt?

How did the Egyptians manage to keep food for a long time, without adequate refrigeration means and in decidedly difficult climatic conditions?

How could their food supplies last through the long hot months with extremely high temperatures?

We have to admit that the ancient Egyptians did well in this area too.

In the area of ​​food preservation they were masters.

The fruit, which played an important role in the daily diet, was almost always made dried in the sun , especially plums, figs and dates, and thus not only remained tasty and fresh for a long time, but also constituted an excellent base for the preparation of desserts.

The meats, of whatever origin they were, they were usually macerated in lemon juice , while for most of the other foods salt was preferred.

The Egyptians had also found a practical and ecological system for waste disposal , that is the pigs, ready to clean up the leftovers, which would otherwise have represented a great danger to the population, as any residue, in excessive heat, became a potential vehicle for infections.