Why bread is called bread, the history of the names of bread varieties. How did the first bread appear?

Who "invented" bread?

Undoubtedly, bread is one of the greatest inventions of the human mind. To whom does it belong? How and when the grain known to people from time immemorial, began to turn into loaf bread, loaf, flat cake? The answers to these questions are given to us by the finds of archaeologists and written evidence from the past.

Scientists believe that for the first time people learned the taste of cereals

back in the Stone Age - about 15,000 years ago. Perhaps bread was known to man much earlier. At first, primitive people simply collected wild cereals and ate the grains raw. Many centuries passed before they learned to grind these grains and mix them with water - a liquid flour stew was obtained, which is still eaten today by the inhabitants of some eastern countries. Over time, the stew became thicker and thicker until it turned into dough.

Obviously, the next step on the way to the modern bun was the manufacture of unleavened cakes. After all, the stew quickly turned sour and dried up, it was impossible to store it, and a person needed a supply of food. Rigid cakes from steep unleavened dough they baked on hot stones, in ashes, and later on the red-hot walls of stoves, which had the shape of bee hives. Similar stoves, called tandoors, are still preserved in Central Asia and Transcaucasia.

The first written records of bread baking are found in ancient Egyptian records dating back to 2860 BC. During the time of Pharaoh Ramses II in ancient Egypt (XIII century BC), 30 varieties of wheat bread were already baked. It was there that they first learned to cook. sour dough. According to some scientists, leaven was born as a result of spontaneous fermentation of dough in uncleaned vessels. A man noticed this feature and began to use it to make loosened bread. The experience of baking bread by the Egyptians was used by the Assyro-Babylonians, Thracians, Greeks. Moreover, instead of yeast, the Hellenes used vinegar. And the very word "bread" apparently goes back to the Greeks, who baked it in special pots, the name of which is consonant with this word.

In ancient Greece, leavened bread was considered a great delicacy. Aristocrats ate it as a separate dish. The best bread was the so-called "samidamita", which was baked from the best flour. Bread was also familiar to the ancient Romans (perhaps the secret of its preparation is one of the "trophies" brought by Julius Caesar from military campaigns in Egypt). The monument to the baker, erected by the Romans two thousand years ago, testifies to how bread was treated here.

Interestingly, people who knew how to bake bread had great authority in those days. In ancient Greece, a baker could hold a very high public position. In Rome, a slave who knew how to bake bread cost ten times more than the most skilled gladiator. And according to the old German laws, the criminal who killed the baker was punished three times more severely than for the murder of any other person.

Since ancient times, bread served as the basis of nutrition among the East Slavic peoples. The "father of history" Herodotus claimed that even 500-400 years before our era, the tribes living in the steppes of the Black Sea and the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov grew excellent wheat. Even earlier evidence of this is the finds made during excavations of settlements on the territory of modern Ukraine. The remains of adobe houses with ovens for baking bread, earthenware vessels for storing grain, grain meters - all these are silent witnesses to the fact that already in the 3rd millennium BC, the inhabitants of this region were not newcomers to the field of baking.

In Rus', since ancient times, not only ready-made loaves were called bread, but also raw grain: rye, wheat, barley, oats are mentioned in the oldest chronicles. It is curious that the monks were punished with “dry food” for their faults, which meant eating bread without brew, without seasoning. Then they baked loaves, carpets, gingerbread, "created bread with honey and butter."

In Rus', sour bread made from leavened dough was especially loved, for the preparation of which they used beer or kvass grounds, yeast or a piece of old dough. The baking process has been constantly improved, and the range of various kinds baked breads. This was facilitated by the high art of flour-grinding in Rus'. So, during the time of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, 25 varieties of rye and 30 varieties of wheat flour were produced.

Bread is the head of everything, it is the most ancient food a person from those that consist of several ingredients and require a lot of labor in preparation. Perhaps it was the need to grow bread that forced a person to move to a settled life from hunting and gathering. Long before it was accidentally (or not coincidentally) discovered that grains and water could be made into an interesting dish, the inhabitants of ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt grew wheat simply for food. Later, they came up with the idea of ​​​​making dough from crushed grains with water. Having learned to grind grains into flour, people soon discovered the technology of baking simple cakes. The first cakes were made from barley, corn and wheat. Interestingly, in ancient and modern China, bread does not play such an important role as in Western society. Rice and noodles take its place.

Yeast dough for baking bread appeared in Egypt around the 17th century. BC. Although yeast was not yet known at that time, there was a special kind of wheat that was not dried, but immediately ground, keeping the bacteria necessary for raising the dough. For a long time this variety of wheat was known only in Egypt. To saturate the dough with yeast bacteria, the ancient Greeks simply left it in the open air for several hours, and later they began to add fermented grape juice. The Gauls added beer foam to the dough. Having received the yeast dough, the housewives left a small amount for next preparation of bread. Thus, yeast bacteria could live on the farm for many years.

In the 10th century BC. The Egyptians learned how to get yeast in pure form and brought out a new variety of wheat, giving white flour. It was almost the same bread as we know it today. At the same time, the Egyptians learned how to brew bread beer. In addition to white bread, about 30 different types of bread were baked in Egypt. It was from the Egyptians that the Greeks spied on the technology of cooking yeast bread and spread it throughout Europe. In ancient Rome, bread was considered more valuable and more nutritious than meat. There was even a state monopoly on baking bread.

Bread is the head of everything, because most modern types of bread were known in the ancient world. Greek cities had unique recipes and organized fairs and competitions. The Roman nobility preferred white wheat bread with milk, eggs and butter. Cheese, onions, poppy seeds, honey, nuts and many other additives were added to the dough. Middle-class people ate bread made from oatmeal, barley, rye and millet flour. The poor had to use acorn flour. It was at that time that the word "bread" had a figurative meaning: food, the basis of life. The prayers mention "our daily bread." Until now, we say: "to earn a living."

In medieval Europe, bread was the main food of the poor. The ruling classes had to keep the price of bread to a minimum to prevent food riots. On the tables of the nobility, stale bread was used as plates for meat dishes. After dinner, the "plates" were given to servants or dogs. Only in the 15th century bread bowls were replaced with wooden ones.

For many centuries, the social status of a person was expressed in the choice of a type of bread. The darker the bread, the lower the position. This was due to the fact that flour premium It was produced only from durum wheat, which was difficult to grind, therefore, millers asked for a higher price for it. Today, bread preferences have changed polarity. Dark and grain varieties of bread are often valued higher than white ones, as they are healthier.

Flour- the main component of bread. High gluten wheat flour is used to make fluffy and elastic dough. Canadian wheat has by far the highest gluten content. In addition to gluten, wheat flour contains water-soluble proteins (albumin, globulin). In addition to wheat, rye, barley, corn, oats, and buckwheat are used for baking bread.

The liquid used for making dough is usually water but milk can also be used. In some types of bread as additives are used fruit juices and beer. The amount of liquid for yeast dough usually 3 times less than the volume of flour.

Yeast- traditional sourdough for the test. For dough preparation and fermentation alcoholic beverages the same strain of yeast is used. Without yeast, bread will not be light and porous, as it is yeast that converts sugar and other carbohydrates into carbon dioxide. After adding the yeast, the dough is left to rise for several hours. To improve the taste, the dough is crushed several times and left to rise again. Baking soda plays the role of baking powder in sweet pastries. In industry, instead of yeast, baking powder is used. At the end of the 19th century, the technology of aerating dough with pressurized carbon dioxide appeared. Now aerated bread is not produced.

To improve the taste and structure of bread, additives are used: animals or vegetable fats, eggs. To reduce the maturation time of the dough are used ascorbic acid and other substances.

Bread is the head of everything, how many people, so many opinions, and how many peoples - so many breads. Each country or even region has unique recipes and traditions associated with bread and pastries.

In Mexico they make corn tortillas and rolls. In Peru, potato breads and sweet pumpkin biscochos are popular, eaten with sweet fruit sauce and chocolate. French baguette has a dense crust and large cavities inside. In Spain, bread is called "pan" and is found in 315 varieties. Traditional Finnish bread baked from rye flour; it is round, with a hole in the middle. In some Finnish families, yeast dough for sourdough is passed down from generation to generation. The richest selection of bread in Germany today - about 500 types of bread and more than 1000 types of sweet rolls. Not surprisingly, the Germans eat more bread per capita than the inhabitants of other countries. In India and Pakistan they make roti and chapati from different types flour, including mustard. Puri is a type of round fried bread. Naan is baked in a tandoor. IN Jewish cuisine there is an interesting recipe for egg and honey sumptuous bread shallah.

Most modern breads are baked using sourdough. Unleavened bread is used for sacred purposes in Judaism and Christianity. During the hasty exodus of the Jews from Egypt, they did not have time to cook yeast bread, therefore, in memory of the Exodus, it is customary to eat matzo on Jewish Passover - unleavened bread. In Christian churches, communion is carried out with the help of unleavened cakes, symbolizing the body of Christ.

Grains of wheat, rye and other cereals are rich in carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins, which retain their activity for a long time. Rye and wheat bread provides about 20% of the human need for protein and
30-40% - in carbohydrates. B vitamins contained in bread are involved in the functioning of the nervous system and tissue respiration processes. A lack of B vitamins can lead to poor vision, skin aging and growth retardation in children. Vitamin E is responsible for the health of skin, nails and hair. Nicotinic acid (vitamin PP) regulates oxidative processes in the body, and its deficiency leads to rapid fatigue. Tryptophan, contained in bread, stimulates the production of serotonin, a hormone Have a good mood. Salts of calcium, potassium, iron, phosphorus and other trace elements are necessary for the development of bones and muscles and maintaining the body in good shape. The most valuable is whole-grain bread, bread made from wholemeal flour and with a high bran content, since vitamins are found mainly in the shells and germs of the grains.

On black bread and water, you can live long enough without harming your health. Feeling full after a small amount bread is explained by glutamic acid, which is especially rich in wheat bread. No wonder people ate a lot more bread centuries ago than we do now. According to statistics, at the beginning of the 20th century in Russia, about a kilogram of bread was consumed per day per person, and a modern person manages 100-200 grams of bread. Of course, many products that were unknown to people of the last century have become available to us, but on the other hand, people deliberately limit the consumption of bread because of the fear of excess carbohydrates. Indeed, with an inactive lifestyle, you can easily get better with the help of bread and rolls. At physical activity bread is needed. People who care about the figure are advised to pay attention to bread with the addition of soy flour, which contains more protein and less carbohydrates.

DIY bread

Unfortunately, bread from the store does not always please us with taste. Older people, remembering the taste homemade bread, make comparisons not in favor of the modern. Not every housewife can afford to bake bread in the oven, because it requires skill and time, and modern ovens are more suitable for pies and muffins than for bread. However, William Pokhlebkin (historian-researcher of products and cuisines of the peoples of the world) believed that baking bread is the simplest action in terms of culinary logic, accessible to everyone. In 10-15 minutes you can bake the simplest cake or roll.

A few years ago, an interesting device appeared on the Russian market - a household bread machine. For the price of a bread machine, it is not much superior to a microwave oven, and the home comfort and health benefits of such an appliance are disproportionately greater. Breadmakers are easy to use, do not require the constant presence of the hostess in the kitchen, and make life very easy, because they can not only bake a variety of breads, pies or casseroles, but also mix the dough for pies, dumplings and pizza and even make jam and herring oil. With a bread maker, you can bring your culinary fantasies and try bread with liqueur, tomatoes, berries, olives or create your own recipe.

Breadmakers usually have several modes that differ in duration and temperature: for white bread (about 3 hours), for light porous bread (up to 6 hours), for baking (1.5-2 hours), for quick baking (about an hour), for dough, and others depending on the manufacturer and class of the oven. With a bread machine, you can even adjust the color of the crust: light, medium or dark. Some bread machines have a delayed start and can independently bake bread in the morning right for breakfast and wake up the family with the aroma of fresh pastries. As for the cost of homemade bread, it is unlikely to be cheaper than store-bought, but bread is not baked for the sake of economy. The main reasons for buying a bread maker are the taste of homemade bread and confidence in the ingredients (because you won't put color enhancers, flavor enhancers and preservatives in your bread, which are present in many modern products, especially in those where a shelf life of more than 2 days is indicated).

Bread recipes (for bread machine)

A feature of making bread in a bread machine is that the ingredients should be laid according to the technology of the oven, in the sequence recommended by the manufacturer. Bread baking modes differ depending on the manufacturer, so read the instructions for your particular oven. Here are a few basic options ingredients for baking bread:

Russian bread

2 tbsp. bread flour
1 st. rye flour,
2 tbsp molasses,
2 tbsp vegetable oil,
2 tsp dry yeast,
1 tbsp water,
apple cider vinegar, cocoa - to taste.

cheese bread

450 g rye flour
180 ml. water,
1 tsp dry yeast,
1.5 tbsp olive oil,
1.5 tbsp dry milk,
1 egg and 1 yolk,
100 grated cheese
1 tbsp Sahara,
salt to taste.

Strawberry Banana Bread

300 g of bread flour,
1 tsp yeast,
2 tbsp butter,
1 tbsp water,
1 egg
30 ml. milk,
30 ml. crushed bananas,
30 ml. strawberry jam.

Bread with cheese and celery

560 ml. flour,
150 ml. milk,
20 ml. water,
50 g butter,
50 g of cheese or "sirtaki" cheese
50 g stalked yellow celery
10 g pressed yeast
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Sahara.

sun bread

freshly squeezed juice from 3 oranges,
grated rind of 3 oranges,
1 tbsp butter,
2 tbsp honey,
1 tsp salt,
300 ml. white flour
2 tbsp sunflower seeds,
1.5 tsp dry yeast.

Charlotte

230 ml sugar
180 ml flour
3 eggs,
1/2 tsp soda,
2-3 apples.

Raisin Casserole

250 g cottage cheese (if the cottage cheese is dry, add 1-2 tablespoons of milk),
1 egg
10 g butter,
2 tbsp Sahara,
0.5 tsp salt,
0.5 tsp soda,
2 tbsp raisins,
2 tbsp semolina.

Quinoa, swan bread.- L. are called different species of two genera of plants from the Chenopodeae family, namely Chenopodium (Gordyagin, Batalin, etc.) and Atriplex (Kaufman). As a surrogate for bread in central and eastern Russia, apparently, Chenopodium album is used almost exclusively, along with which, however, its variety Ch. viride. Chenopodium album has a ubiquitous distribution among us, as a weed, in gardens, vegetable gardens, near roads and arable lands, generally mainly on soils altered by human culture; very often Ch. album is found in rye crops and grows there in abundance, especially in lean years. The seeds of the quinoa, which we are only interested in here, are surrounded by a green perianth tightly pressed to the fruit and covered with a thin, greenish-gray pericarp, for its part, tightly adjacent to the seed coat. The latter, in the mature seed, is black in color, has a slight luster, and is hard; its outer surface reveals irregularities, which, according to Gordyagin's research, depend on uneven cuticularization and uneven deposition of pigment in the thickness of the outer wall of the epidermal cells. When grinding swan grain, its brittle peel breaks up into dark, acute-angled fragments, many of which are so small that they pass through the finest sieve. The kernel on the break appears completely white (starch), so that its color differs sharply from the dark color of the seed coat. In shape, the swan grain resembles a biconvex lentil; its diameter is approximately 1 mm.

Chemical composition swan seed, according to analyzes made at the hygienic institute of Moscow University (L. from Tula province.) and in hygienic. Kaz laboratories. univ., is presented in the following form:

From this it can be seen that the seeds of L. contain many nitrogenous substances (and almost all of the nitrogen falls on the share of the so-called "true" proteins) and fat, but at the same time they are very rich in mineral constituent parts and fiber; in this respect, L. comes close to oats. Compound ash of these seeds, according to Brusyanin's analyzes, the following:

The first news about the use of L. seeds in Russia dates back to 1092, when a crop failure occurred in many regions of Russia, and especially in Kyiv. Then, according to the chronicler, the Monk Prokhor, a monk of the Pechersk Monastery, collected L. and prepared bread from it, which he distributed to many poor people. Others followed his example, and Prokhor himself received the name "swan" from here. Then, in subsequent years of crop failures and the high cost of bread, we constantly encounter references to the fact that the starving population, among other surrogates for bread, also used L. In medical journals. council for 1840-41. it means that the peasants of the Tula province. in 1840 they ate flour from L., and that the peasants of the Oboyan district. Kursk province. ate, by the way, and bread from one L. In the hungry bread of the peasants of the Kazan province, in 1874 and 1884, more or less significant amounts of L. were contained (Skvortsov, Orlov). In the famine of 1891-92, in all the barren areas of central, Volga, and eastern Russia, grass played an outstanding role in the food of the peasant population. In general, L. is, apparently, the most frequent surrogate for cereal plants in Russia, so frequent that in many areas it is rare to see hungry bread without L.; especially during crop failures of rye, the lack of the latter in peasant life is largely covered by L., the price of which, in such times, reaches 50-70 kopecks. for a pud. There are (indications that even in good years, many Chuvashs and Cheremis partly eat L., and sell rye; for them, according to eyewitnesses, lean years differ from good ones only in that it is necessary to increase the admixture of L. in bread.

Swan bread. Being collected Ch. arr. together with rye, L. is eaten in all those forms in which rye flour is also used, mainly, of course, in the form of bread. At the same time, swan seeds are not subject to special treatment; if L. is collected separately, from vegetable gardens, wastelands, etc., then its seeds, before turning them into flour, for the most part they pound in mortars to remove the green parts of the flower, containing some kind of bitter beginning. Purification of flour from the seed coats of L. is not carried out, since, on the one hand, it is extremely difficult, and on the other hand, it does not represent any economic benefit due to the fact that, due to the extremely small size of swan seeds, when they are purified from peel will be a huge percentage of garbage. Bread from L. is prepared either in the usual way, on sourdough, or unleavened cakes are baked from it, since it is impossible to make sourdough bread from pure L. or with a small admixture of rye flour to L.. For baking bread, rye flour is added to L. flour, if possible, at least ¼ part, because with a smaller admixture of rye flour, swan bread easily falls apart. Often, together with L., seeds of field buckwheat (Polygonum convolvulus) are found in hungry bread. In 1891-92. we received from the Tula lips. bread made from 66-75% L. and 25-34% rye flour or rye bran. In the Kazan province. L., during the last crop failure, was often used in its pure form, especially when food bread was eaten and had to wait until a new distribution; more often L. was mixed with rye flour, as well as with spring bread (wheat, barley, spelt). The most varied proportion was taken, depending on the available supply of bread, starting with 1 part of rye or some other flour per 10 parts of L., and reaching the mixture equally. In appearance, bread containing more or less significant amounts of L. differs sharply from rye bread: due to poor raising of the dough, it seems low, heavy; its dark brown upper crust is cut with deep cracks and easily lags behind the crumb; bread generally resembles a clod of earth, or rather, peat; it crumbles easily and on its fracture fragments of the seed coat of the swan seed are visible in the form of small black dots; the crumb is dark gray or earthy black, moist to the touch in fresh bread, compact; indentation from the fingers is not aligned; the smell of bread is heavy, musty; the taste is bitter, disgusting for an unaccustomed person; when chewing, the bread crunches on the teeth (even if there is no sand in it), due to the admixture of hard seed peel. In order to at least partially mask the unpleasant taste of swan bread, it is sometimes salted very heavily. Old, stale, swan bread appears, on the one hand, as hard as a stone, and on the other hand, it is still brittle and brittle from a large number of large and small cracks.

Chemical composition swan bread is subject to fluctuations, depending on the relative quantities taken for the preparation of its ingredients. Fresh bread (crumb and crust, on average) contains 40-50% water; in the crumb, the amount of water even reaches 55-57%. According to two analyzes of swan breads of different composition, produced in hygienic. inst. Moscow univ., in dry matter it turned out:

Thus, L. bread is different from ordinary Russian rye bread great content nitrogenous substances and fat, but in particular - huge amount fiber and ash, most of which is insoluble in water. According to other researchers who analyzed swan bread, it sometimes contains even larger amounts of fiber and ash, compared to those found by us:

Experiments on digestibility swan bread was first produced during the lean years of 1891/92. They gave disappointing results, showing that the nutritional principles of the swan seed, cooked in the form of bread, are not very accessible to human digestive juices. According to the research of N. Popov, produced in hygiene. inst. Moscow univ., no more than 41.5% of nitrogenous substances found in swan bread (75% L. and 25% coarse rye flour) are absorbed by a person. The same results were obtained by Sulmenev (in the hygienic lab. military-medical acad.), from whose work it is clear that the digestibility of swan bread gradually decreases as the admixture of rye flour to L. decreases: at ½ tsp. L. and ½ h. rye. flour absorbs nitrogen. thing 45.44% and at ¾ tsp. L. and ¼ rye. flour absorbs nitrogen. thing 41.81%. Nitrogen is absorbed from pure L. bread. thing 29.63%. Therefore, the nitrogen digestibility of swan bread is very low and can drop to 29.6%. Some other ingredients of this bread, i.e., fat and nitrogen-free substances, are apparently digested better than proteins; but fiber passes through the human digestive tract unchanged; in the study of dense eruptions of people who ate swan bread, it turned out that the seed coat of L. not only does not dissolve under the influence of digestive juices, but even seems to be compacted (Stefanovsky). In addition, attention is drawn to the extremely small amount of swan bread eaten by experienced subjects per day: people who are used to eating 2-3 fn. rye bread, master swan bread no more than ¾-½ fn.; accustomed to more tender food, are not able to eat more than ½-⅔ fnl. swan bread a day; attempts to take large amounts of it cause nausea and other unpleasant subjective sensations. Under these conditions, it is clear that bread containing more significant amounts of L., not only by itself, but even mixed with other nutrients(potatoes, buckwheat porridge, sunflower oil, etc.) are not able to maintain the nitrogen balance of the test subjects, and that the latter, with this way of eating, daily lose a lot of nitrogen from their body and, during the experimental time, significantly decrease in weight ( Popov, Sulmenev). In general, when eating exclusively swan. bread, the test subjects are quickly exhausted (they are in a state of starvation), turn pale, sometimes feel ringing in the ears, dizziness, tightness in the stomach, become incapable of mental or physical labor; their body temperature drops somewhat, the number of heartbeats decreases (Popov). The latest phenomena suggest the presence in L. of some harmful or even toxic principle, and this assumption finds some confirmation for itself in the fact that out of 6 rats, which are in hygiene. inst. Moscow univ. fed with swan bread, 5 died within the first days, and when they were opened, the phenomena of acute gastroenteritis were found. There is no doubt, further, that in humans, too, sharp fragments of the seed coat, which is found in large quantities in swan bread, can cause irritation of the digestive tract, starting from the mucous membrane of the mouth and ending with the large intestine. - Serious attention, from a public health point of view, deserves those phenomena that are swan bread. causes not in people who feed on it, scientific experiment for the sake of, within 2-3 days, and those who are doomed to this food need and use it for a more or less long time. The nature of the phenomena, in general, is the same for both. In 1891/92, zemstvo doctors in lean areas unanimously pointed out that the use of bread with an admixture of L. causes pain in the stomach, vomiting, diarrhea, and in general all signs of gastroenteritis; chronic gastritis with such a diet is aggravated, there is flatulence and sometimes painful urge to defecate and urinate, if it is impossible to satisfy them. Severe anemia, headaches, fainting, general apathy, a decline in nutrition, the inability to work, and a general decrease in all vital functions are a natural consequence of long-term nutrition of L. and the disorder of the gastrointestinal tract caused by it. This is most strongly reflected in the elderly and in children, who tolerate food with an admixture of L. worse than others; in children, severe bloating is often noticed, and they sometimes directly refuse L. bread. Mortality between children, under the influence of surrogate bread with L., increases significantly. All the phenomena mentioned are extremely difficult to treat with medical means and yield only after the cessation of eating swan bread. Such are the sad consequences of replacing rye bread with a surrogate from L., such are the results of experiments on the value of L. as a nutrient. They show that the seeds of L., along with a significant content of nutrients (nitrogenous substances, fat, starch), have such negative qualities(disgusting bitter taste, the inability to separate the seed peel from the grain, the huge content of fiber insoluble in human digestive juices, the irritating effect of fragments of the seed coat, the impossibility of obtaining good loose bread, etc.), which make them a completely unusable surrogate for bread grains and generally inconvenient , in whatever form, food material for humans, and therefore it is extremely undesirable that, in case of crop failures, the lack of rye in peasant life is at least partially covered by L.

Literature: A. Ya. Gordyagin, “Several botanical data on the seeds of L.” (“Dnevn. General. Kaz. doctors”, 1892); N. P. Popov, “Hungry Bread, etc.” ("Medical Review"; No. 12, 1803); N. D. Sulmenev, “L., its chemical composition and digestibility of nitrogenous substances” (St. Petersburg, 1893); F. K. Stefanovsky, “Materials for studying the properties of hungry bread” (Kaz., 1893).

Scientists believe that bread first appeared on earth over fifteen thousand years ago. The life of our ancestors in those distant times was not easy. The main concern was food. In search of food, they turned their attention to cereal plants. These cereals are the ancestors of today's wheat, rye, oats, and barley. Ancient people noticed that a grain thrown into the ground returns a few grains, that more grains grow on loose and moist soil. For a long time, people ate raw grains, then they learned to grind them between stones, getting cereals, and cook it. So the first millstones, the first flour, the first bread appeared. The first bread looked like liquid porridge. She is the mother of bread. It is still used in our time in the form of bread stew in some countries of Africa and Asia. In wild-growing wheat, grains were hardly separated from the ear. And to make it easier to extract them, ancient people made another discovery. By that time, man had already learned how to make fire and used it for cooking. It was noticed that the heated grains are more easily separated from the ears. The collected cereals began to be heated on heated stones, which were placed in pits dug for this purpose. By chance, a man discovered that if overheated grains, that is, fried ones, are crushed and mixed with water, the porridge turns out to be much tastier than the one he ate from raw grains. This was the second discovery of bread. Approximately six and a half - five thousand years ago, man learned to cultivate and cultivate wheat and barley. At that time hand mills, mortars were invented, the first baked bread was born. Archaeologists suggest that once during the preparation of grain porridge, part of it spilled out and turned into a ruddy cake. With her pleasant smell, appetizing appearance and taste, she surprised a person. It was then that our distant ancestors began to bake unleavened bread in the form of flat cakes from thick grain porridge. Dense, unbroken, burnt pieces of brown mass bore little resemblance to modern bread, but it was from that time that bakery arose on earth. When an ancient man, with great difficulty, loosened the earth, sowed grain, harvested crops and baked bread from it, then he also found a homeland. A lot of time passed and another miracle happened. The ancient Egyptians learned how to make bread from fermented dough. It is believed that due to an oversight of the slave who prepared the dough, it acidified and, in order to avoid punishment, he nevertheless risked baking cakes. They turned out more magnificent, rosier, tastier than from unleavened dough.

Egypt

The ancient Egyptians mastered the art of loosening dough using fermentation, which is caused by the smallest organisms - yeast fungi and lactic acid bacteria, the existence of which they did not even suspect. So, 5-6 thousand years ago in ancient Egypt, the beginning of the development of bakery production was laid. On the section of bread made from fermented dough, many small pores are visible. This is the result of the vital activity of yeast fungi, which cause alcoholic and lactic acid fermentation in the dough with the formation of carbon dioxide, alcohol and lactic acid. Carbon dioxide, trying to get out of the dough, loosens it and creates porosity, which makes the bread fluffy and friable. Lactic acid bacteria in the process of life form lactic acid in the dough, which contributes to the swelling of flour proteins, improving the taste and aroma of baked bread. Bread made from fermented dough is not only tastier, it lasts longer - it stays fresher and is better absorbed by the body. Ancient Egyptian bakers prepared various types of bread: oblong, pyramidal, round, in the form of braids, fish, sphinxes. Signs were placed on bread in the form of a rose, a cross, a sign of a family or clan, on products for children - in the form of a rooster, kitten, turkey, etc. They baked sweet bread, which included honey, fat, milk, they were valued more than usual bread.
In the cursive script adopted in ancient Egypt, the sun, gold and bread were designated the same way - a circle with a dot in the middle. Hymns were composed in honor of bread.

Greece and Rome

The art of making leavened bread from fermented dough passed from the ancient Egyptians to Greece and Rome. Such bread was considered a delicacy in these states, it was available only to the rich, black bread was baked for slaves - dense and coarse. Bread was specially baked for athletes who were to participate in the Olympic Games. On the occasion of sports competitions in Olympia, special white, well-leavened bread was baked for participants and guests and served with olives and fish.
In ancient Greece, bread was considered completely an independent dish and consumed like every separately served dish. The richer the house and the nobler the owner, the more plentifully and generously he treated his guests with white bread. Bread was treated with superstitious reverence. It was believed that a person who ate food without bread committed a great sin and would be punished by the gods for this.
Master bakers kept bread recipes in the strictest confidence and passed them down from generation to generation. Monuments were erected in honor of the masters. So, to date, a tombstone has been preserved in Rome - a monument 13 meters high to the baker Mark Virgil Eurysak, who lived 2 thousand years ago, the founder of several large bakeries. These bakeries provided bread for almost the entire population of Rome.
The fate of wheat and bread is directly proportional to the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. Caesar, Augustus, and Nero distributed grain free of charge to keep the unemployed people from revolting, but the demand was so great that for this it was necessary to expand the borders of the Empire. In those days, the Roman Empire stretched from Britain to Africa, and grain came from Egypt. But soon after the split of the Empire into two parts, East and West, control over Egyptian grain was lost.

Ottoman Empire

Bread was an indispensable part of the Ottoman cuisine. large quantities used by people from all social strata of society. The rich had bread nice addition to the main dishes, while for the poor, he himself was the main dish. Mehmed el-Fatih, immediately after the conquest of Istanbul, appointed Khizir Bey as the head, who first of all organized the production of pure, high-quality bread. In 1502, Sultan Bayezid introduced a state guarantee for the quality of bread, later this practice spread throughout the territory. After such a decision many great bread masters were brought up, especially in the Karadeniz region.

India

In India, criminals, depending on the severity of the crime, were not given bread for a certain time.

Most Indian breads are made from very finely ground wheat flour from a grain called ata. They are usually unleavened and most often do not use yeast for their preparation. However, thanks to preparation and cooking methods, the bread is deliciously light and airy. The only downside, from the chef's point of view, is that its best is eaten fresh rather than pre-made.

Tibet

Tsampa is a national Tibetan dish. The main food of the Tibetans is flour made from lightly toasted barley grains.
There are also bread cakes from tsampa, like thin lavash, an analogue of the Indian chapati. Cakes are baked in a cauldron, or on a heated iron sheet.
Sometimes tsampa is called the national Tibetan dish. In addition to being the main part of the Tibetan diet, tsampa is also used for ritual purposes - pinches of tsampa are thrown into the air during many Buddhist rituals. The ritual of throwing tsampa appeared in pre-Buddhist times and served to pacify the spirits of the area and ask for their patronage and protection. Then it was adopted by Buddhism as a "symbol of celebration and joy" and began to be used to celebrate the birth of a child and funerals. Nowadays, it is especially famous in connection with the New Year celebrations, when tsampa is thrown while chanting prayers calling for good luck in the new year, both for oneself and for others. Tsampa is also thrown during funerals to release the soul of the deceased.

Byzantium

In the statutes of the Byzantine workshops of the 10th century, it was stipulated: "Bread-makers are not subject to any state duties, so that they can bake bread without any interference." At the same time, in the same Byzantium, for baking bad bread, a baker could be shaved bald, flogged, tied to a pillory, or expelled from the city.

England

In 1266, a law was passed in England controlling the price of bread, this law lasted 600 years. The English title "Lord" comes from the word Hlaford-loaf ward (providing food), and the title "Lady" comes from the word Hlaefdige- Loaf kneader (kneader). The Lord was the breadwinner for those around him, and his wife, the Lady, was seen as the distributor.

Italy

In Italy, bread has not yet become part of the industry. It is still traditional, especially in the south of the country, which is considered a “reserve” for baking. Here you can find family bakeries everywhere, where bread recipes are carefully passed down from generation to generation.
In Italy, there are many types of breads that vary greatly in cooking technology: focaccia, bruschetta, michetta, rosetta, banana, biova, bovolo, ciabatta, chiriola, manina ferrarese, pane casarechio - one of the main favorites of the south from Tuscany to Sicily.

Switzerland

Swiss ancestors began to bake bread several thousand years ago. The oldest bread in Europe, found in 1976 in the town of Twann on Lake Biel, dates back to 3530 BC. The ancient inhabitants of the piled buildings located on the shore of the lake baked flat cakes of bread on hot stones and covered them with ashes.
Initially, there were no individual bakeries. Bread was baked in each household for its own needs. In the era of the early Middle Ages, flour mills and bakeries were created at the monasteries. So, for example, the bakery of the St. Gallen monastery was able to bake up to 1000 loaves of bread at a time. Along with a large amount of baked bread, a wide range of bread products is impressive - yeast, unleavened, with flour additives and various shapes.
With the development of cities and an increase in the demand for bread, bakeries began to be created. Bakers' guilds have developed strict standards for bread quality control at all stages of production and rules for the operation of baking ovens. Each baker or miller who violated one of the rules was subjected to a shameful punishment: they were put in a basket and hung up in front of everyone for show over a dung pit. The culprit could free himself only by jumping out of the basket into the slurry in front of a curious crowd.
White flour, made from the core of a grain of wheat, was the most expensive, so it often happened that dishonest millers mixed white chalk or bone meal into it. A little cheaper was the flour containing small particles of the grain shell. In Switzerland, it is called "half-white", which in Russia corresponds to second-class flour.
The poor ate black bread. The most common was rye bread, bread made from wheat, millet, oatmeal and spelled flour was relatively rare. During the period of crop failures, when there were not enough stocks of rye and wheat, ground chestnuts, acorns, plant roots and even sawdust were mixed into the flour.
When bread was the staple food of the poor, its consumption was much higher than it is now. So, in the XV century. a resident of Basel consumed an average of 410 g of bread daily. Daily rate servants' bread in the monastery, according to the documents of the 16th century, ranged from 700 to 950 grams. In 1998, every average Swiss consumed 143 grams of baked goods per day!
Gastronomic habits and food culture have changed over the centuries. Beginning in the 18th century, bread was added to recipes for regional specialties, primarily in fillings and soups. The most famous Swiss dish used with bread is fondue, which in French "fondre" means "melt, melt". The principle is very simple - put bread cubes on skewers and dip them into melted cheese.
In the second half of the XX century. there has been a trend towards a decrease in the consumption of bread by the population. This is primarily due to the improvement in the quality of life. The growth in incomes of the population led to changes in the diet. However, having lost the role of the main energy source of the body, bread remained an indispensable component. healthy eating. The main thing in bread today is quality! In connection with the change in the structure of bread consumption, new varieties began to be produced. Gradually, in the German part of Switzerland, rye-wheat varieties squeezed out White bread.

France

In France, the most important store is a bakery. According to French law, even the smallest village must be provided with fresh bread daily. Bread is baked twice a day. Of course, the usual assortment of the bakery includes all the other delicacies of French pastries for breakfast: croissants, buns with chocolate, brioches. In addition, pies, pastries (gateaux), fruit cakes (tartes aux fruits) and quiche pies With spicy stuffing(quiches). Not a single inhabitant of the land of all lovers, be it an elegant Frenchwoman, a carefree student, or a businesslike clerk, thinks his own perfect breakfast without fresh and fragrant pastries. Let's note at the same time that the French, despite the daily consumption of baguettes and croissants, have been and remain the most slender nation in the world. Their secret lies in their love for exceptionally fresh pastries, the recipes of which have been perfected over the centuries and which, when used wisely, do not harm your figure.
The technology of kneading the dough, which then turns into a crispy baguette or miniature brioche, for French baker is not a boring task at all. Making baked goods is creativity that brings joy, it is an expression of love for people and your work.

Germany

The basis of any breakfast in Germany is bread and rolls. name exact number no one takes varieties of bread, because almost every city and region has its own special varieties, and, in addition, almost every day new, “fashionable” ones appear. Of course, fashion trends are also intensifying here. For example, now the last cry is diet varieties with reduced calories. And besides, in Germany you will find bread with any additives: potato bread, carrot, cabbage. Bread with olives, bread with nuts, bread with pumpkin seeds… In general, probably nowhere in the world more black grain bread is consumed than in Germany.

Iran

Bread in Iran is baked in several ways. Mostly Iranian bread is thin, very delicious tortillas several types: sangak, nun, lavash, taftun, barbary. It must be said that in Iranian society, bread occupies a special place. According to the religious beliefs of the Iranians, bread is God's grace, and this cannot be denied. Thus, bread is the main and religious food.
The main types of Iranian bread:
Sangyak - magnificent bran bread, is considered the most useful.
Lavash is the most popular, 90 percent of the country's population consume it.
Nun is a huge cake, they are made on hot pebbles. Removing the bread from the pebbles, the baker starts banging it against the wall so that the stuck pebbles fly out. The size of the cake reaches 1 meter in length, it is worn wrapped around the belt or on the arm.

Uzbekistan

Since ancient times, bread has been sacred for the people of Uzbekistan. There is even a legend confirming this belief. It says that each new ruler minted his own coins, but the payment to the local population was not minted coins, but bread!
According to one custom, when someone leaves the house, he bites off a piece of Obi-non (Uzbek bread), and then this bread is stored until the traveler returns and eats the remaining bread. Other national tradition- laying a basket of bread on the head also indicates a respectful attitude towards bread.
Uzbek bread is baked in traditional ovens made of clay, which are called "tandir". These fragrant breads are crispy and extraordinarily tasty. Since ancient times, the famous scientist of medicine Avicenna used Uzbek bread to treat diseases.
There are two ways to make cakes, regular and improved.

The most common type Uzbek flatbread obi-non is baked from a simple dough based on a special sourdough used only for this type of bread. It is from her that the unique taste of obi-non depends to the greatest extent. The yeast culture propagated in this sourdough is also unique, like, for example, the yeast culture of Borodino bread - that is, no other can be replaced.
To prepare the obi-non dough, either a pre-purchased sourdough is used, or the yeast culture necessary for it is bred. By old recipe for this, add to the thick meat broth finely chopped onion And spoiled milk(which also uses its own "proprietary" yeast culture), and knead flour on this mixture. After sixteen hours of fermentation, the resulting culture is propagated by diluting warm water until a liquefied mass is obtained. Then flour is added, water is added and kneaded. Now the duration of fermentation is four to six hours.
Next, adding water according to the calculation, knead the dough on the sourdough, which should ferment for another forty minutes, and then proceed to mold the cakes. In the subsequent kneading of the dough, the leaven of the previous preparation is used, which is updated at least once every 8-10 days. Often, a piece of “ripe” dough from a previous preparation, which is called khamir-turush, is used as a starter.
A nutritious bread called "Patir" is prepared with the addition of lamb fat or butter to keep it fresh longer.

Patyr is made large in size (larger in diameter than a soup plate) and baked only in a tandoor, and they are kept there longer than other types of yeast dough cakes, baking in moderate heat, for which coals in the tandoor are collected in the middle of a slide and sprinkled thickly with ashes. Patyrs of small sizes - smaller than a tea saucer - can be baked on a greased sheet in the oven, and also on moderate heat, but only after preheating the oven well. (Patiry of the modern version works especially well in the oven). Then put more yeast into the dough than into the tandoor patyr. - 50 g. For tandoor patyr, the dough, after kneading and standing, is cut into pieces of 300-500 g, from which cakes are rolled out 1 cm thick in the middle, 2-3 cm along the edges. For patyr baked in the oven, the cakes should be about 4 times less in weight and half as thin. To obtain the characteristic shape of a patyr, it can be pressed in the middle with a pusher or the back of a glass and be sure to prick the pressed part with a fork or a special tattoo (chekich). The prepared cakes are kept under a napkin for 15-20 minutes, after which they are baked. In the oven, baking patyr lasts approximately 20 minutes.
In addition to the most common obi-non and patyr, made from rich dough with the addition of lamb fat, there are unique varieties that are baked less often and therefore seem “exotic” even to many residents of Uzbekistan. At the same time, each region of Uzbekistan can boast of its own variety, which is not found anywhere else. And each of them has its own sourdough, its own original cooking technology, its own unique taste.
Flat cakes gala-osiegi-non, which came from the village of Gala-Osie, near Samarkand, are famous far beyond the borders of the Samarkand region. Everyone who has visited Samarkand definitely tries to buy this bread when leaving the city: this has already become a tradition. There are more than fifteen varieties of this cake. Each of them has its own special, enough complicated recipe preparation of sourdough based on fermented cream or whey, with the addition of finely chopped onion and sesame oil. Even when stale, this bread retains its surprisingly attractive appearance, and, when marked, restores all its taste.
The Fergana Valley is famous for its delicious Katlama puff pastries, each layer of which is smeared with butter or sour cream during cooking.
They also make tortillas with cracklings jizzali-non, tortillas from cornmeal zogora-non, tortillas on herbal infusion kuk patyr and many other varieties.
Traditionally, cakes are not cut with a knife, but are broken by hand. Moreover, putting broken pieces of flatbread “face down” is strictly prohibited by table etiquette: this is considered an irreverent attitude towards bread.

Belarus

Belarusian bread products contains dairy products. Widespread hearth Belarusian bread from a mixture of seeded rye flour and wheat flour of the second grade, Minsk bread, Belarusian kalach, milk bread, Minsk vitushka.

Moldova

Moldavian gray wheat bread, baked from plain flour, has a good density, a wonderful strong bready aroma and a pronounced taste.

the Baltic States

Healthy bread, which includes natural or powdered milk, whey, baked by the inhabitants of the Baltic states. From rye wallpaper and peeled flour They bake Lithuanian and Kaunas bread, aukstaichu roll with poppy seeds, Latvian homemade bread, Riga travel buns, high-grade Svetka-meise, etc. Estonian bakers have created a new product containing dairy products - Valga bun, which is distinguished by its high taste.

Armenia

Georgia

Ukraine

It is impossible without pain to recall the tragic situation that was artificially created in the villages of Ukraine. The government's repressive measures against the Ukrainian peasantry led to a terrible mass famine in 1932-1933. In many collective farms, all the grain was taken away. Not even seed was left. Representatives of the authorities, having found grain from the peasants, completely confiscated it. The authorities issued directive documents that provided for the confiscation of grain in private mills. Bakeries began to close in cities. All this led to mass death of people from starvation. Only in Ukraine, millions of people died of starvation, among them a significant part of children. The sowing campaign was approaching, but there was no one to work. Many were emaciated or swollen from hunger. To save a person from starvation, sometimes a piece of bread was enough, from which it always becomes warmer and more reliable. The survivors again grew bread, rejoiced at the friendly shoots in the fields. Their long hard days are filled with worries and worries about the harvest.

Russia

Before the spread of the potato, bread was a staple food in Russia. Dough products for the Russian people are a symbol of the great work invested in the cultivation and production of bread and a symbol of a prosperous life. After all, the proverb “bread is the head of everything” puts everything in its place. The greatest Russian custom in this sense is to meet dear guests with “bread and salt”.
The main role in the life of the Russian people was played by rye, or, as it was called, black bread. It was much cheaper and more satisfying than wheat, white bread. However, there were such varieties of rye bread that even very wealthy people could not always buy. These included, for example, "Boyarsky" bread, for baking which they used special grinding flour, fresh butter, moderately fermented (not sour) milk, and spices were added to the dough. Such bread was baked only by special order for special occasions.
From flour sifted through a sieve, sieve bread was baked. It was much more tender than sieve bread, which was baked from flour sifted through a sieve. "Fur" types of bread were considered low-quality. They were baked from wholemeal flour and were called chaff. The best bread served at the table in rich houses was "grainy" white bread made from well-processed wheat flour.
During the period of crop failures, when there were not enough stocks of rye and wheat, all kinds of additives were mixed into flour - carrots, beets, later potatoes, as well as wild-growing ones - acorns, oak bark, nettles, quinoa.
Since ancient times, bakers have enjoyed honor and respect. If in the XVI-XVII centuries ordinary people in Rus' were called in everyday life and in official documents by the derogatory names Fedka, Grishka, Mitroshka, then bakers with such names were called Fedor, Grigory, Dmitry, respectively. The fact that the work of a baker was highly valued is also evidenced by this fact. IN Ancient Rome, for example, a slave who knew how to bake bread was sold for 100 thousand sesterces, while only 10-12 thousand were paid for a gladiator.
In Rus', the baker was also required not only skill, but also honesty. After all, famine often occurred in the country. In these difficult years, a special guard was established for bakeries, and those who allowed "mixing" or spoiling bread, and even more so speculating on it, were severely punished.
At the end of the 19th century, rural residents baked bread themselves in Russian ovens, while the urban population usually bought bread from bakers, who baked it in large quantities and in various types. Bakeries sold hearth (high thick flat cakes) and shaped (in the form of a cylinder or brick) bread from trays.
Bakery products were also varied: pretzels, bagels, bagels. The villagers rarely ate them. They usually bought them in the city for a gift to children and did not count them as food. The townspeople, on the other hand, quite widely used all these pastries in everyday life.
Kalachs have always enjoyed special love in Rus'. Kalach was on the everyday table of an ordinary citizen, and at magnificent royal feasts. The king sent kalachi as a sign of special favor to the patriarch and other persons who had a high spiritual rank. When letting a servant go on leave, the master, as a rule, gave him a small coin "for kalach".
Moscow bakers were famous for their excellent bread. Filippov was widely known among them. Filippovskie bakeries were always full of customers. The most diverse audience came here - from young students to old officials in expensive overcoats and from well-dressed ladies to poorly dressed working women. Filippov bakery products were in great demand not only in Moscow. His kalachi and saiki were sent daily to St. Petersburg to the royal court. Convoys with Philippian buns and bread even went to Siberia.
When Filippov was asked why "black bread" is good only for him, he answered: "Because bread loves care," adding his favorite expression: "And it's very simple!" Indeed, there is nothing complicated, just a person who treated his work with love, knew his price.