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Did crops expand in tandem with culinary practices from their region of origin? Evidence from ancient DNA and material culture

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 January 2024

Harriet V. Hunt Open the ORCID record for Harriet V. Hunt [Opens in a new window] ,
Hongen Jiang Open the ORCID record for Hongen Jiang [Opens in a new window] ,
Xinyi Liu ,
Diane L. Lister ,
Yidilisi Abuduresule ,
Wenying Li ,
Changsui Wang  and
Martin K. Jones
Harriet V. Hunt
Affiliation:
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Richmond, UK McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, UK
Hongen Jiang*
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, School of Humanities, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P.R. China
Xinyi Liu
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, USA
Diane L. Lister
Affiliation:
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, UK Conservation Research Institute, University of Cambridge, UK
Yidilisi Abuduresule
Affiliation:
Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology and Cultural Relics, Urumchi, P.R. China
Wenying Li
Affiliation:
Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology and Cultural Relics, Urumchi, P.R. China
Changsui Wang
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, School of Humanities, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P.R. China
Martin K. Jones
Affiliation:
McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, UK
*
*Author for correspondence ✉ Jianghongen@ucas.ac.cn
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Abstract

Grain-cooking traditions in Neolithic China have been characterised as a ‘wet’ cuisine based on the boiling and steaming of sticky varieties of cereal. One of these, broomcorn millet, was one of the earliest Chinese crops to move westward into Central Asia and beyond, into regions where grains were typically prepared by grinding and baking. Here, the authors present the genotypes and reconstructed phenotypes of 13 desiccated broomcorn millet samples from Xinjiang (1700 BC–AD 700). The absence in this area of sticky-starch millet and vessels for boiling and steaming suggests that, as they moved west, East Asian cereal crops were decoupled from traditional cooking practices and were incorporated into local cuisines.

Keywords

Central Asiawestern ChinaBronze Ageancient DNAphenotypemilletstarchculinary traditions
Type
Research Article
Information
Antiquity , Volume 98 , Issue 397 , February 2024 , pp. 12 - 29
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Antiquity Publications Ltd

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