Bread was central to the formation of early human societies. From the western half of Asia, where wheat was domesticated, cultivation spread north and west, to Europe and North Africa. This in turn led to the formation of towns, as opposed to the nomadic lifestyle, and gave rise to more and more sophisticated forms of societal organization. Similar developments occurred in eastern Asia, centered on rice, and in the Americas with maize.
Charred crumbs of a flatbread made by proto-Natufian hunter-gatherers from wild wheat, wild barley and plant roots between 14,600 and 11,600 years ago have been found at the Shubayqa 1 archaeological site in the Black Desert in Jordan, predating the earliest known making of bread from cultivated wheat by thousands of years.
Bread is otherwise strongly associated with agriculture, and is found in Neolithic sites in Turkey and Europe from around 9,100 years ago.
There is extensive evidence of breadmaking in Ancient Egypt in the form of artistic depictions, remains of structures and items used in bread making, and remains of the dough and bread itself.
The most common source of leavening in antiquity was to retain a piece of dough (with sugar and water in) from the previous day to utilize as a form of sourdough starter.Pliny the Elder reported that the Gauls and Iberians used the foam skimmed from beer to produce “a lighter kind of bread than other peoples.” Parts of the ancient world that drank wine instead of beer used a paste composed of grape must and flour that was allowed to begin fermenting, or wheat bran steeped in wine, as a source for yeast.
The idea of a free-standing oven that could be pre-heated, with a door for access, appears to have been Greek.
Even in antiquity there were a wide variety of breads. In ancient times the Greek bread was barley bread: Solon declared that wheaten bread might only be baked for feast days. By the 5th century BC bread could be purchased in Athens from a baker’s shop, and in Rome, Greek bakers appeared in the 2nd century BC, as Hellenized Asia Minor was added to Roman dominion as the province of Asia; the foreign bakers of bread were permitted to form a collegium. In the Deipnosophistae, the author Athenaeus (c.A.D.170 – c. 230) describes some of the bread, cakes, and pastries available in the Classical world.Among the breads mentioned are griddle cakes, honey-and-oil bread, mushroom-shaped loaves covered in poppy seeds, and the military specialty of rolls baked on a spit. The type and quality of flours used to produce bread could also vary, as noted by Diphilus when he declared “bread made of wheat, as compared with that made of barley, is more nourishing, more digestible, and in every way superior.” In order of merit, the bread made from refined [thoroughly sieved] flour comes first, after that bread from ordinary wheat, and then the unbolted, made of flour that has not been sifted.”The essentiality of bread in the diet was reflected in the name for the rest of the meal: ópson, “condiment”, i.e. bread’s accompaniment, whatever it might be.
Middle Ages
In medieval Europe, bread served not only as a staple food but also as part of the table service. In the standard table setting of the day the trencher, a piece of stale bread roughly 6 inches by 4 inches (15 cm by 10 cm), was served as an absorbent plate. At the completion of a meal the trencher could then be eaten, given to the poor, or fed to the dogs. It was not until the 15th century that trenchers made of wood started to replace the bread variety.
To the 19th century
Up to the 19th century, bread in Europe was often adulterated with hazardous materials, including chalk, sawdust, alum, plaster, clay and ammonium carbonate. This gradually came to an end with government action, such as the 1860 and 1899 Food Adulteration Acts in Britain. America had a more difficult time ending these processes of adulteration however, as various states had varying policies regarding bread making.
In the late 19th century, the British empire encouraged a noticeable increase in import of bread from the colonies. This was regarded as British bread despite its origins, and institutes such as the Imperial Economic Committee encouraged the consumption and trade of foods such as bread from across the empire as they viewed it as cementing Britain’s position in its colonies further. Advancements in refrigeration technology and techniques also encouraged an increase in the import of bread, as it could be preserved a lot longer than before and could be transported over longer distances. Bread was transported and stored using refrigeration more than most other foods, particularly in North America, as it was a staple food in most diets, more so than other staple foods like meat.
INGREDIENTS
Preparation
- Mix the flour, salt and yeast in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre, add the oil and water, and mix well. If the dough seems a little stiff, add 1-2 tbsp water.
- Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it until the dough becomes satin-smooth.
- Place it in a lightly oiled bowl to prove. Leave to prove for 1 hour until doubled in size or place in the fridge overnight.
- Knock back the dough, then gently mould it into a ball. Place it on a baking tray lined with parchment to prove for a further hour until doubled in size.
- Dust the loaf with flour and cut a cross, about 6cm wide, into the top of the loaf.
- Preheat the oven to 220˚C/fan 200˚C/gas 7 and bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Bake until golden brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped underneath.
- Cool on a wire rack.
