Roman Ingredients

The Cucurbitaceae

The names used and what is actually being referred to in terms of Cucurbitaceae in ancient Roman recipes is in dire need of re-appraisal. Here is my attempt at making some sense out of the confusion.

Cucurbitaceae also called cucurbits or the gourd family, are a plant family consisting of about 965 species in around 95 genera. The main centres of diversity are in Africa and South/Central Americas. The plants in this family are grown around the tropics and in temperate areas, where those with edible fruits were among the earliest cultivated plants in both the Old and New Worlds. And therein lies the rub. Almost all the squashes and pumpkins we think of today are from the Americas and were unknown before the Columbian exchange. So, Romans would have no knowledge of pumpkins or of squashes such as the acorn or butternut squash or of marrows and courgettes (zucchini).

Part of the confusion is that the name is derived from the Latin cucurbita, meaning ‘gourd’. But for the Ancient Romans this would have only meant members of the following genera: Lagenaria (calabash/bottle gourd); Citrullus (watermelon); Cucumis (cucumber and melon) and possibly some Momordica (bitter melon). That’s it, everything else is off the table if re-creating Roman recipes. If you see a recipe referring to a squash what they really mean is melon… not something that we would normally think of cooking with. Things can be even more confusing for pumpkins. For centuries old world melons and New World pumpkins were confounded, with both gaining the French term pompion and this confusion made its way into the new-fangled dictionaries, most notably A Greek-English Lexicon by Liddel and Scott, and A Latin Dictionary by Lewis and Short so that translations came to use the term ‘pumpkin’ for what should, botanically, be called a melon.

Though the Romans did have cucumbers (any they were very popular) it should be noted that often, when a Roman author mentions ‘cucumeres’ they may actually be referring to a melon. Indeed, cucumbers were known to be hard to grow and were often sown in barrows so that they could be wheeled out during the day and brought inside to protect them from the cool of the night.

Snake Melons — Cucumis melo subsp. melo Flexuosus Group

In fact, there is little archaeological evidence for cucumber growing (it is known to have been cultivated). Part of this may be that cucumber seeds do not preserve well in spoil heaps. However, it should also be noted that the Romans made little distinction between cucumbers and other cucurbits. So the cucumis of Columella and Pliny was not cucumber, as commonly translated, but Cucumis melo subsp. melo Flexuosus Group (snake melon or vegetable melon).

In its white/green form, you can see the reason for all the confusion.

Indeed, Columella describes his cucumis fruit as being hairy, twisted or coiled, and snake-like (Book 10, lines 389–393) which seems much more similar to snake melon than cucumber.

Bottle Gourds — Lagenaria siceraria

As well as snake melons, the bottle gourd Lagenaria siceraria (which is a member of the edible gourds) was also commonly grown around the Mediterranean as a vegetable and is referred to as Sikya in Latin.

To prepare this, cut off and discard the narrow neck. Peel off the skin with a vegetable peeler then slice in half lengthways and remove the spongy interior and the seeds.

Young seeds are edible, so you can retain these for later use. Now slice and cook the flesh.

And there you have it, here is a gourd, still available today, that we know from Archaeological and written evidence that the Ancient Romans did grow and consume and which can be used in modern re-creations of Ancient Roman recipes and cookery.

Columella's use of the term cucurbita, typically translated as ‘gourd’, indicates that at least two cultigens were being grown at the time. One was long-fruited and for eating, and hence this certainly commands a better price than any other (Book 11, 3:50). The fruit of the other was broader and used when dried for making various kinds of vessels and instruments: for the fruits are quite suitable for use as vessels, like the Alexandrian gourds, when they have been thoroughly dried (Book 11, 3 : 49). So, both edible bottle gourds and bottle gourds to be dried as vessels were available.

A search of contemporary Roman murals and mosaics reveals a range of contemporary images of bottle gourds, showing just how common they were as part of the Roman diet. So, in interpreting Ancient Roman recipes we have several species that could be referred to as 'cucumeres' and the word need not refer to modern cucumbers. In fact, it's more likely that a melon species, whether snake melon or carosello cucumber (see below) is referred to.

Corsello Cucumber — Cucumis melo var. chate

Another melon species that was consumed by Romans in place of, or confused with, cucumber is the Cucumis melo var. chate that is still known as the Italian Cucumber or Carosello Cucumber. A carosello cucumber is a muskmelon that is picked early like a courgette (zucchini), yet consumed like a gourmet cucumber. With a fine crisp-yet-tender texture, rich flavour and exceptional quality, many carosello cucumbers are truly in a class of their own.

For those who are not familiar with them, carosello cucumbers can be elongated like cucumber or they can be more spherical like melons. In cross section, they do tend to look indistinguishable from cucumbers, however. There is a cultivar, Carosello Barese with red seeds.

Other contemporary images clearly show melons (Cucumis melo). Though the first image is almost certainly of watermelon (Citrullus lanatus).

So, watermelon, melon, snake melon, cucumber and bottle gourds were all known and consumed in Rome. Bottle gourds were probably more common in reality than we think they were and cucumbers were less common. In most cases, where cucumeres are referred to snake gourds are what’s actually being named.

To get the nomenclatures right, the translations and recipes of Apicius, Cato and Columella (and more) will require serious re-appraisal.

Roman Vegetables

One thing to remember about cooking Roman dishes is that the vegetables that the Romans knew were, in many cases not exactly the same as the ones that are familiar to us today. We could say that Roman vegetables were on the way towards domestication, but they had, in most cases, not yet reached their final domesticated form (that was not done until the later Middle Ages).

The versions of foods we know today that Romans ate would have been more primitive and not so developed. Think wild cabbages rather than farmed ones, wild peas rather than modern peas. One of the few vegetables that were almost identical in Ancient Roman and modern forms were asparagus spears. I will deal with these issues in more detail, below...

For example, cabbage was a table luxury in Rome, but had become a commonplace vegetable by the Middle Ages. However, during Roman times, the domesticated separation of Brassica oleracea, the wild cabbage into separate cultivated cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli and kale had begun. The Romans did not have our modern forms of these leafy greens, but they had the antecedents of all these lineages. Interestingly the root words for the lineages, brassica derives from bresic, a Celtic word for cabbage. Many European and Asiatic names for cabbage are derived from the Celto-Slavic root cap or kap, meaning "head". Which might indicate where the Romans obtained their original stocks from.

The headed cabbage variety was known to the Greeks as krambe and to the Romans as brassica or olus; the open, leafy variety (kale) was known in Greek as raphanos and in Latin as caulis.

Brassica was considered by some Romans a table luxury, although Lucullus considered it unfit for the senatorial table. The more traditionalist Cato the Elder, espousing a simple Republican life, ate his cabbage cooked or raw and dressed with vinegar; he said it surpassed all other vegetables, and approvingly distinguished three varieties; he also gave directions for its medicinal use, which extended to the cabbage-eater's urine, in which infants might be rinsed. Pliny the Elder listed seven varieties, including Pompeii cabbage, Cumae cabbage and Sabellian cabbage.

According to Pliny, the Pompeii cabbage, which could not stand cold, is "taller, and has a thick stock near the root, but grows thicker between the leaves, these being scantier and narrower, but their tenderness is a valuable quality". The Pompeii cabbage was also mentioned by Columella in De Re Rustica. Apicius gives several recipes for cauliculi, tender cabbage shoots. The Greeks and Romans claimed medicinal usages for their cabbage varieties that included relief from gout, headaches and the symptoms of poisonous mushroom ingestion.

Modern round-headed cabbages, however, do not appear until the 14th century in England so Roman cabbages would be more open-head types, still not completely distinct from kale.

Broccoli resulted from breeding of landrace Brassica crops in the northern Mediterranean starting in about the sixth century BC. Broccoli has its origins in primitive cultivars grown in the Roman Empire and was most likely improved via artificial selection in the southern Italian Peninsula or in Sicily. Sprouting broccoli would probably be closer to Ancient Roman broccoli than the standard broccoli of today.

Forerunners to modern Brussels sprouts were probably cultivated in Ancient Rome.[citation needed] Brussels sprouts as they are now known were grown possibly as early as the 13th century in what is now Belgium. The first written reference dates to 1587.[citation needed] During the 16th century, they enjoyed a popularity in the southern Netherlands that eventually spread throughout the cooler parts of Northern Europe.

Kale originated in the eastern Mediterranean and Anatolia, where it was cultivated for food beginning by 2000 BCE at the latest. Curly-leaved varieties of cabbage already existed along with flat-leaved varieties in Greece in the 4th century BC. These forms, which were referred to by the Romans as Sabellian kale, are considered to be the ancestors of modern kales.

Carrots and Parsnips

Though botanically distinct and in their modern forms unmistakeable to us, the Romans made little distinction between carrots and parsnips. The first mention of the root in classical sources is from the 1st century AD; the Romans ate a root vegetable called pastinaca, which may have been either the carrot or the closely related parsnip. Indeed, the original carrots were generally white in colour (wild carrots are white) just as parsnips were.

The first carrots were cultivated for their aromatic leaves and seeds as spices in palaeolithic Europe and not for their tap root. Indeed, carrots with edible roots were a rather late development.

From the Greco-Roman world the plant spread eastwards and indeed the modern-style plant with an edible taproot was re-introduced into Europe in Spain by the Moors in the 8th century. In the 10th century, roots from West Asia, India and Europe were purple. The modern carrot originated in Afghanistan at about this time. The 11th-century Jewish scholar Simeon Seth describes both red and yellow carrots, as does the 12th-century Arab-Andalusian agriculturist, Ibn al-'Awwam.

A depiction labeled "garden" carrot from the Juliana Anicia Codex, a 6th-century AD Constantinopolitan copy of Dioscorides' 1st-century Greek pharmacopoeia cleary shows an orange carrot. The facing page states that "the root can be cooked and eaten."

If you compare the image of a parsnip (left) with some of the carrot variation you can see that it is difficult to tell parsnips apart from some of the white carrot cultivars (which were the most common in Early Roman times), which helps explains Ancient Roman confusion. This is why Roman recipe writers often did not significantly distinguish between carrots and parsnips. The distinction that seems so obvious to us simply was not so clear-cut during Roman times.

Here I should also mention, the skirret Sium sisarum, a root vegetable in the Apiceae that was domesticate in China, but which had arrived in Europe by Roman times. It is presumed to be the siser mentioned by Pliny the Elder as a favourite of the Emperor Tiberius. But, again, due to confusion with the carrots and parsnips of the time, the identification is not 100%. It also means that mentions of carrots and parsnips in Roman texts could also be references to skirrets. As a vegetable, these have essentially disappeared these days, though they were much more commonly cultivated during medieval times. It is still possible to purchase seeds on-line so you can grow your own.

Lettuce was first cultivated in ancient Egypt for the production of oil from its seeds. The plant was probably selectively bred by the Egyptians into a plant grown for its edible leaves, with evidence of its cultivation appearing as early as 2680 BC. Lettuce was considered a sacred plant of the reproduction god Min, and was carried during his festivals and placed near his images. The plant was thought to help the god "perform the sexual act untiringly". Its use in religious ceremonies resulted in the creation of many images in tombs and wall paintings.

Lettuces were much valued during Roman times. Lettuce was first cultivated in ancient Egypt for the production of oil from its seeds. The cultivated variety appears to have been about 75cm (30 in) tall and resembled a large version of the modern romaine lettuce. These upright lettuces were developed by the Egyptians and passed to the Greeks, who in turn shared them with the Romans. Around 50 AD, Roman agriculturalist Columella described several lettuce varieties – some of which may have been ancestors of today's lettuces.

As described around 50 AD, lettuce leaves were often cooked and served by the Romans with an oil-and-vinegar dressing; however, smaller leaves were sometimes eaten raw. During the 81–96 AD reign of Domitian, the tradition of serving a lettuce salad before a meal began. Post-Roman Europe continued the tradition of poaching lettuce, mainly with large romaine types, as well as the method of pouring a hot oil and vinegar mixture over the leaves.

The Latin term lactuca refers to the milky sap of the lettuce stem which has mild soporific properties.

Artichokes and Cardoons

The modern globe artichoke (Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus) is a variety of a species of thistle cultivated as food.

The edible portion of the plant consists of the flower buds before the flowers come into bloom. The budding artichoke flower-head is a cluster of many budding small flowers (an inflorescence), together with many bracts, on an edible base. Once the buds bloom, the structure changes to a coarse, barely edible form. Another variety of the same species is the cardoon, a perennial plant native to the Mediterranean region. Both wild forms and cultivated varieties (cultivars) exist.

The artichoke is a domesticated variety of the wild cardoon (Cynara cardunculus), which is native to the Mediterranean area. There is on-going debate over whether the artichoke was a food among the ancient Greeks and Romans, or whether that cultivar was developed later, with Classical sources referring instead to the wild cardoon. The cardoon is mentioned as a garden plant in the eighth century BCE by Homer and Hesiod.

Pliny the Elder mentioned growing of 'carduus' in Carthage and Cordoba. In North Africa, where it is still found in the wild state, the seeds of artichokes, probably cultivated, were found during the excavation of Roman-period Mons Claudianus in Egypt. Varieties of artichokes were cultivated in Sicily beginning in the classical period of the ancient Greeks; the Greeks calling them kaktos. In that period, the Greeks ate the leaves and flower heads, of which cultivation had already improved from the wild form. The Romans called the vegetable carduus (hence the name cardoon). Further improvement in the cultivated form appears to have taken place in the medieval period in Muslim Spain and the Maghreb; although the evidence for this development is inferential only.

As a result, even though true artichokes might have been available to the Romans they would probably have looked more like cardoons than the artichokes that we know today. So, to be period accurate it would be best to prepare cardoons for a Roman meal.

Turnip

The turnip or white turnip (Brassica rapa subsp. rapa) is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, fleshy taproot. The most common type of turnip is mostly white-skinned apart from the upper 1 to 6 centimetres (1⁄2 to 2+1⁄2 inches), which protrude above the ground and are purple or red or greenish where the sun has hit. This above-ground part develops from stem tissue, but is fused with the root.

Wild forms of the turnip and its close relatives, the mustards and radishes, are found throughout western Asia and Europe. Starting as early as 2000 BC, related oilseed subspecies of Brassica rapa like oleifera had been domesticated as crops. These may have been domesticated several times, independently, from the Mediterranean to India, though these are not the same turnips cultivated for its roots. Furthermore, estimates of domestication dates are limited to linguistic analyses of plant names.

Edible turnips were possibly first cultivated in northern Europe, and were an important food in the Hellenistic and Roman world. The turnip is probably one of the few vegetables that would have looked the same to Ancient Romans as it does to us, today. Note that the below-ground root and the greens of turnips are edible and frugal Romans would, undoubtedly, have eaten both.

Beetroot

The beetroot (beets in North America) is the taproot portion of a beet plant (Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris Conditiva Group), usually known in North America as beets while the vegetable is referred to as beetroot in British English, and also known as the table beet, garden beet, red beet, dinner beet or golden beet.

It is one of several cultivated varieties of Beta vulgaris grown for their edible taproots and leaves (called beet greens); they have been classified as B. vulgaris subsp. vulgaris Conditiva Group.

The domestication of beetroot can be traced to the emergence of an allele in its wild ancestor, Sea beet (Beta vulgaris subsp. maritima), which enables biennial harvesting of leaves and taproot. Beetroot was domesticated in the ancient Middle East, primarily for their greens, and were grown by the Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. The name 'beta' is the ancient Latin name for beetroot, possibly of Celtic origin (cf betys in modern Welsh), becoming bete in Old English — indicating a more ancient origin for this root crop. By the Roman era, it is thought that they were also cultivated for their roots.

Rutabaga/Swede/Swedish Turnip

No, the swede/rutabaga was never part of the ancient Roman diet. It is an hybrid between the cabbage and the turnip that was developed as a crop in Germany in the 15^th/16^th centuries.

Taro is a root vegetable (botanically, a corm). It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles (yam, dasheen, ube, kalo, edo, and elephant’s ears). Taro corms (botanically underground stems) are a food staple in African, Oceanic, and South Asian cultures (similar to yams). Taro is believed to be one of the earliest cultivated plants. Taro was probably introduced from Africa to Cyprus and from there it entered the Greek and Roman worlds. Indeed, it is sometimes known in Roman sources as the Egyptian bean indicating knowledge of its African origins.

In cultures where grains provided the staple carbohydrates any carbohydrate rich tuber (or corms to be botanically correct) would be highly prized. Taro was not something for the common table, bur provided a rare and expensive meal.

Note that all parts of the plant are classified as poisonous if consumed raw. However, when cooked, the corms, leaves and tender stems are safe to consume.

Beans

Many of the bean species we know today come from the Americas and others are of Africa origins. In fact the bean species available in the Mediterranean were limited and the staple beans for the Roman table would have been broad (fava) beans, lentils, chickpeas, green peas and lupins.

Lupin Beans

The legume seeds of lupins, commonly called lupin beans, were popular with the Romans, who cultivated the plants throughout the Roman Empire where the lupin is still known in extant Romance languages by names such as lupini. Though they have become more animal fodder rather than being used for human consumption today, they are still consumed in certain regions of Italy.

Lupini were used by the Romans, who spread their cultivation throughout the Roman Empire. Today, lupini are most commonly found in Mediterranean countries and their former colonies, especially in Spain, Portugal, Greece, and Brazil, and across the Middle East.

Today they are traditionally eaten as a pickled snack food, primarily in the Mediterranean basin (L. albus), Latin America (L. mutabilis) and North Africa (L. angustifolius). The most ancient evidence of lupin is from ancient Egypt, dating back to the 22nd century BCE.

For the curious, lupini beans can be purchased from many health food stores.

Broad (Fava) Beans

Vicia faba, commonly known as the broad bean, fava bean, or faba bean, is a species of vetch, a flowering plant in the pea and bean family Fabaceae. It is widely cultivated as a crop for human consumption, and also as a cover crop. Varieties with smaller, harder seeds that are fed to horses or other animals are called field bean, tic bean or tick bean. Horse bean, Vicia faba var. equina Pers., is a variety recognized as an accepted name. This legume is very common in Southern European, Northern European, East Asian, Latin American and North African cuisines. Ultimately they are all derived from the Celtic bean, the original cultivated form of Vicia faba.

Roman broad beans would probably be more like modern horse beans with smaller seeds than our broad beans, but with more intense flavour. Note that broad bean pods are also edible and young broad bean pods are probably what Roman authors meant when they referred to 'green beans' (modern green beans originate from the Americas).

Lentils (Lens culinaris or Lens esculenta)

The lentil (Lens culinaris or Lens esculenta) is an edible legume. It is an annual plant known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about 40 cm (16 in) tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each.)

The cultivated lentil Lens culinaris subsp. culinaris was derived from its wild subspecies L. culinaris subsp. orientalis. The lentil was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent of the Near East and then spread to Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and the Indo-Gangetic plain. The primary center of diversity for the domestic Lens culinaris as well as its wild progenitor L. culinaris ssp. orientalis is considered to be the Middle East. The oldest known carbonized remains of lentil from Greece's Franchthi Cave are dated to 11,000 BC. For most Roman recipes I’m assuming brown/green lentils; though red lentils were cultivated in Egypt and must have been part of the Roman diet.

Lentils can be eaten soaked, germinated, fried, baked or boiled — by far the most common preparation method. The seeds require a cooking time of 10 to 40 minutes, depending on the variety; small varieties with the husk removed, such as the common red lentil, require shorter cooking times (and unlike most legumes don't require soaking).

Like many other legume crops, lentils can fix atmospheric nitrogen in the soil with specific rhizobia and Romans knew that planting lentils would help improve the soil.

Chickpeas (Cicer arietinum)

The chickpea or chick pea is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae..

Cicer reticulatum is the wild progenitor of chickpeas and currently grows only in southeast Turkey, where they are believed to have been domesticated, which can be dated to around 7000 BC. Domesticated chickpeas have been found at Pre-Pottery Neolithic B sites in Turkey and the Levant, namely at Çayönü, Hacilar, and Tell es-Sultan (Jericho). Chickpeas then spread to the Mediterranean region around 6000 BC and India around 3000 BC.

Chickpeas are usually rapidly boiled for 10 minutes and then simmered for longer. Dried chickpeas need a long cooking time (1–2 hours) but will easily fall apart when cooked longer. If soaked for 12–24 hours before use, cooking time can be shortened by around 30 minutes. Chickpeas can also be pressure cooked or sous vide cooked at 90°C (194°F).

Chickpeas were particularly favoured by the Romans and were a staple of the urban diet in the 1st century AD. In Pompeii, and across the empire, the chickpeas would be used several ways and could be roasted and served in a ceramic vessel (dolia). Often dried nuts and fruit would also be served in these dolia, alongside another favourite of the Romans, figs. Frequently, however, they would be turned into stews or a spreadable paste which was added to bread. This paste was originally translated as ‘pease pudding’, which is a Northern English foodstuff made from yellow split peas. However, the Roman variant appears to have no relation to the English variety, despite England once being a Roman province. The Roman’s chickpea spread was made with chickpea flour and water and would typically be used as a spread or fried and eaten as a fritter similar to the Sicilian panelle.

Young chickpea greens are edible (like pea greens) and it is highly probably that they were eaten where chickpeas were grown and by the lower social classes.

Green Peas (Pisum sativum)

Peas represent the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and develop from the ovary of a (pea) flower.

The wild pea is restricted to the Mediterranean Basin and the Near East. The earliest archaeological finds of peas date from the late Neolithic era of current Syria, Anatolia, Israel, Iraq, Jordan and Greece. In Egypt, early finds date from c. 4800–4400 BCE in the Nile delta area, and from c. 3800–3600 BCE in Upper Egypt. The pea was also present in Georgia in the 5th millennium BCE. Farther east, the finds are younger. Peas were present in Afghanistan c. 2000 BC, in Harappan civilization around modern-day Pakistan and western- and northwestern India in 2250–1750 BCE. In the second half of the 2nd millennium BCE, this legume crop appears in the Ganges Basin and southern India.

In early times, peas were grown mostly for their dry seeds. From plants growing wild in the Mediterranean Basin, constant selection since the Neolithic dawn of agriculture improved their yield. In the early 3rd century BC, Theophrastus mentions peas among the legumes that are sown late in the winter because of their tenderness. In the first century AD, Columella mentions them in De re rustica, when Roman legionaries still gathered wild peas from the sandy soils of Numidia and Judea to supplement their rations.

Thus, in Roman cookery dried split peas would have been used and the cultivated varieties would not have been so far removed from their wild antecedents.

Bitter Vetch (Vicia ervilia)

Though not often mentioned in the culinary texts, we know that this was a common pulse as large quantities have been recovered in Pompeii. Today it is more thought of as animal fodder than human food. This may also have been the case in Roman time, with the pulse only being fed to slaves and the poor (though it is possible that leached and re-dried bitter vetch may have been used as an adulterant in red lentils.)

Vicia ervilia, commonly known as ervil or bitter vetch, is an ancient grain legume crop of the Mediterranean region. The crop is easy to cultivate and harvest and can be grown on very shallow, alkaline soils.

The grain when split, boiled and dried, resembles red lentils. For human consumption the bitterness of the seeds needs to be removed through leaching by several changes of boiling water. Pliny the Elder states that bitter vetch (ervum) has medicinal value like vetch (vicia), citing the letters of Augustus where the emperor wrote that he regained his health from a diet of bitter vetch (N.H. 18.38).

Green Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) and Runner Beans (Phaseolus coccineus)

Neither of these species could be part of the Ancient Roman diet, as both originate in the Americas and would not be seen in Europe until the Columbian Exchange.

Endive

Endive is a leaf vegetable belonging to the genus Cichorium (chicory/daisy family), which includes several similar bitter-leafed vegetables. Species include Cichorium endivia (also called endive), Cichorium pumilum (also called wild endive), and Cichorium intybus (also called common chicory). Common chicory includes types such as radicchio, puntarelle, and Belgian endive.

One hypothesis is that Endive originated in Egypt as a cultivar of C endiva and is known as Curly endive, or frisée (var. crispum). The name of the plant has an etymological connection with the Old Egyptian keksher "chicory" (the plant is said to have been grown and used in ancient Egypt). This type has narrow, green, curly outer leaves. It is sometimes called chicory in the United States and is called chicorée frisée in French. Further confusion results from the fact that frisée also refers to greens lightly wilted with oil. It was this slightly bitter, leafy, green that was known to the Romans.

In ancient Rome, a dish called puntarelle was made with chicory sprouts. It was mentioned by Horace in reference to his own diet, which he describes as very simple: "Me pascunt olivae, me cichorea, me malvae" ("As for me, olives, endives, and mallows provide sustenance"). Catalogna chicory (Cichorium intybus var. foliosum), also known as puntarelle, includes a whole subfamily (some varieties from Belgian endive and some from radicchio) of chicory, many of which are leafy greens and which may be derived from Ancient Roman edive; it is still used throughout Italy.

Nutritionally, endive is rich in many vitamins and minerals, especially in folate and vitamins A and K, and is high in fibre. It also contains kaempferol.

Onion (Allium cepa)

The Onion, also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The history of ancestral onion species is not well documented. Ancient records of onion use spans western and eastern Asia, so the geographic origin of the onion is uncertain. Yet, domestication likely took place in West or Central Asia. Onions have been variously described as having originated in Iran, western Pakistan and Central Asia.

Traces of onions recovered from Bronze Age settlements in China suggest that onions were used as far back as 5000 BCE, not only for their flavour, but also for the bulb's durability in storage and transport. Ancient Egyptians revered the onion bulb, viewing its spherical shape and concentric rings as symbols of eternal life. Onions were used in Egyptian burials, as evidenced by onion traces found in the eye sockets of Ramesses IV.

Pliny the Elder of the first century CE wrote about the use of onions and cabbage in Pompeii. He documented Roman beliefs about the onion's ability to improve ocular ailments, aid in sleep, and heal everything from oral sores and toothaches to dog bites, lumbago, and even dysentery. Archaeologists unearthing Pompeii long after its 79 CE volcanic burial have found gardens resembling those in Pliny's detailed narratives. According to texts collected in the fifth/sixth century AD under the authorial aegis of "Apicius" (said to have been a gourmet), onions were used in many Roman recipes

Evidence from onion remains found in Herculaneum and onions on statuary indicate that Roman onions would have been smaller than today with more greens, more like what we would think of as shallots.

Leek (Allium ampeloprasum)

The leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of Allium ampeloprasum, the broadleaf wild leek (syn. Allium porrum). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a stem or stalk. The genus Allium also contains the onion, garlic, shallot, scallion, chive, and Chinese onion. Three closely related vegetables, elephant garlic, kurrat and Persian leek or tareh, are also cultivars of A. ampeloprasum, although different in their uses as food.

Leeks have a mild, onion-like taste. In its raw state, the vegetable is crunchy and firm. The edible portions of the leek are the white base of the leaves (above the roots and stem base), the light green parts, and to a lesser extent, the dark green parts of the leaves. The dark green portion is usually discarded because it has a tough texture, but it can be sautéed or more commonly added to stock for flavour. A few leaves are sometimes tied with twine and other herbs to form a bouquet garni.

Leeks were eaten in ancient Rome and regarded as superior to garlic and onions. The 1st century CE cookbook Apicius contains four recipes involving leeks. Raw leeks were the favourite vegetable of the Emperor Nero, who consumed it in soup or oil, believing it beneficial to the quality of his voice. This earned him the nickname 'Porrophagus' or 'Leek Eater'.

Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis)

Asparagus or garden asparagus, (folk name sparrow grass) is a perennial flowering plant species in the genus Asparagus. Its young shoots are used as a spring vegetable. It is a herbaceous, perennial plant[8] growing to 100–150 centimetres (40–60 inches) tall, with stout stems with much-branched, feathery foliage. The 'leaves' are in fact needle-like cladodes (modified stems) in the axils of scale leaves; they are 6–32 millimetres (1⁄4–1+1⁄4 inches) long and 1 mm (1⁄32 in) broad, and clustered four to 15 together, in a rose-like shape. Of Eurasian origin, asparagus was grown for food and medicinal purposes over 2000 years ago.

The emperor Caesar Augustus would bark “Velocius quam asparagi conquantur!” or “Faster than cooking asparagus,” which can be loosely translated as, “Get going already!” Augustus was such a connoisseur of the elegant vegetable, he organized elite military units to procure it for him. The famed Asparagus Fleets made rounds in the empire to import the best varietals back to Rome, while the fastest runners were employed to carry fresh spears high in the Alps, where it could be frozen for later use.

Asparagus is one of the few cultivated vegetables that we have historical images for and the mosaics depict bundles of cut asparagus that are essentially the same as the bundles sold today.

Olives (Olea europaea)

The olive, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as Olea europaea 'Montra', dwarf olive, or little olive.

The olive's fruit, also called an "olive", is of major agricultural importance in the Mediterranean region as the source of olive oil; it is one of the core ingredients in Mediterranean cuisine. Thousands of cultivars of the olive tree are known. Olive cultivars may be used primarily for oil, eating, or both. Olives cultivated for consumption are generally referred to as 'table olives'.

Fossil evidence indicates the olive tree had its origins 20–40 million years ago in the Oligocene, in what is now corresponding to Italy and the eastern Mediterranean Basin. Around 100,000 years ago, olives were used by humans in Africa, on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, for fuel management and most probably for consumption. Wild olive trees, or oleasters, were present and collected in the Eastern Mediterranean since ~19,000 BP. The genome of cultivated olives reflects their origin from oleaster populations in the Eastern Mediterranean. The olive plant was first cultivated some 7,000 years ago in Mediterranean regions.

For thousands of years olives were grown primarily for lamp oil, with little regard for culinary flavour. Its origin can be traced to the Levant based on written tablets, olive pits, and wood fragments found in ancient tombs. As far back as 3000 BC, olives were grown commercially in Crete; they may have been the source of the wealth of the Minoan civilization.

The ancestry of the cultivated olive is unknown. Fossil olea pollen has been found in Macedonia and other places around the Mediterranean, indicating that this genus is an original element of the Mediterranean flora. Fossilized leaves of olea were found in the palaeosols of the volcanic Greek island of Santorini and dated to about 37,000 BP. Imprints of larvae of olive whitefly Aleurobus olivinus were found on the leaves. The same insect is commonly found today on olive leaves, showing that the plant-animal co-evolutionary relations have not changed since that time. Other leaves found on the same island are dated back to 60,000 BP, making them the oldest known olives from the Mediterranean.

Olives are thought to have been domesticated in the third millennium BC at the latest, at which point they, along with grain and grapes, became part of Colin Renfrew's triad of Greek staple crops that fuelled the emergence of more complex societies.[48] Olives, and especially (perfumed) olive oil, became a major export product during the Minoan and Mycenaean periods. Dutch archaeologist Jorrit Kelder proposed that the Mycenaeans sent shipments of olive oil, probably alongside live olive branches, to the court of the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten as a diplomatic gift. In Egypt, these imported olive branches may have acquired ritual meanings, as they are depicted as offerings on the wall of the Aten temple and were used in wreaths for the burial of Tutankhamun. It is likely that, as well as being used for culinary purposes, olive oil was also used to various other ends, including as a perfume.

According to Pliny the Elder, a vine, a fig tree, and an olive tree grew in the middle of the Roman Forum; the olive was planted to provide shade (the garden plot was recreated in the 20^th century). The Roman poet Horace mentions it in reference to his own diet, which he describes as very simple: "As for me, olives, endives, and smooth mallows provide sustenance."

Alexanders (Smyrnium olusatrum)

Alexanders (or alisander) is an edible flowering plant of the family Apiaceae (Umbelliferae), which grows on waste ground and in hedges around the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastal regions of Europe. It was formerly widely grown as a pot herb, but is now appreciated mostly by foragers.

Alexanders is a stout, glabrous (hairless) biennial growing to 150 (sometimes 180) cm tall, with a solid stem up to 22 mm in diameter, which becomes hollow and grooved with age. It has a tuberous tap-root which can be 60 cm long, as well as fibrous lateral roots. The plant bears greenish-yellow flowers in umbrella-like clusters with a pungent, myrrh-like scent.

Alexanders is commonly supposed to be the herb described by Dioscorides as Hipposelinum, which the Romans called olusatrum. However, Roman writers make a clear distinction between Hipposelinum and smyrnium (alisander). It has long been believed that alexanders were introduced into Britain as a potherb by the Romans, mainly earliest find of alexanders in Britain is a seed found at a Roman site at Caerwent. However, this is not definitive as the pollen is not distinctive. The modern Welsh for alexanders, dulys (black herb, named for the distinctive black seeds when mature) is not related to Roman smyrnium, suggesting a separate origin.

Alexanders are valued by foragers today, just as they were valued by the Romans and the unopened or part-opened flower buds make an excellent substitute for broccoli. The roots are also edible and very tasty, though you would have to plant in your own garden or in a pot to taste these. he young foliage is intermediate in flavour between celery and parsley and the seeds have an acrid, peppery taste. Alexanders seeds can be sourced commercially.

Alexanders was once highly valued in northern Europe as an early vegetable: one of the few fresh plants that can be eaten in February or March. In the west of Britain, it had a reputation amongst sailors of "clearing the blood" and curing scurvy, and in Dorset it was known as "helrut", which is possibly a corruption of "heal root". The seeds have also been used as a cure for scurvy.

Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus)

Raphanus raphanistrum, also known as wild radish, white charlock or jointed charlock, is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae. One of its subspecies, Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus, includes a diverse variety of cultivated radishes. The species is native to western Asia, Europe and parts of Northern Africa. The origins and domestication of Radish is very murky and little archaeological evidence remains. Several species have been domesticated and the centre of diversity appears to be in Southeast Asia. However, wild Raphanus raphanistrum is seen in western Asia and around the Mediterranean.

Radishes enter the historical record in third century BC. Greek and Roman agriculturalists of the first century AD gave details of small, large, round, long, mild, and sharp varieties.

All tender parts of the plant are edible. The leaves and flowers have a spicy taste or aftertaste. The seedpods can be eaten, as can the outer skin of the root (after being washed).The seeds of radishes grow in siliques (widely referred to as "pods"), following flowering that happens when left to grow past their normal harvesting period. The seeds are edible, and are sometimes used as a crunchy, sharp addition to salads. Some varieties are grown specifically for their seeds or seed pods, rather than their roots. The rat-tailed radish, an old European variety is grown specifically for its seed pods. This is historically old and may have been known by the Romans.

Ground Elder (Aegopodium podagraria)

Ground Elder is a species of flowering plant in the carrot family Apiaceae that grows in shady places. The name "ground elder" comes from the superficial similarity of its leaves and flowers to those of elder (Sambucus), which is not closely related. Other common names include herb gerard, bishop's weed, goutweed, gout wort, snow-in-the-mountain, English masterwort[2] and wild masterwort. It is the type species of the genus Aegopodium. It is native to Europe and Asia, but has been introduced around the world as an ornamental plant, where it occasionally poses an ecological threat as an invasive exotic plant.

The tender leaves have been used since antiquity as a spring leaf vegetable, much as spinach is used. It is commonly used for soup. Young leaves are preferred as a pot herb. It is best picked from when it appears (as early as February in the UK and other parts of northern Europe) to just before it flowers (May to June).

The plant is said to have been introduced into Great Britain by the Romans as a food plant (potherb) and into Northern Europe as a medicinal herb by monks.[citation needed] It is still found growing in patches surrounding many monastic ruins in Europe, and descriptions of its use are found among monastic writings, such as in Physica by Hildegard von Bingen.

As far as a pot herb goes, the leaves are papery and perfumed with a hint of lemon. Any attempt to cook mature leaves will result in something inedible, but new leaves are well worth eating lightly boiled. The very young leaves are delightful. You can get an endless supply by hoeing and letting them sprout.