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Posted on 6:20 AM by Wanto and filed under
By Jason Ledger
The existence of olives as food is the result of sheer chance combined with a stroke of genius. Present-day olive trees are apparently descended from a wild tree of Greek origin. The first such individual must have been the result of a chance mutation, some time as far back as 3000 B.C., and all the olive trees raised nowadays are its offspring, multiplied by man.
In the first century B.C. the largest producer of olive oil was Italy, where the olive tree was introduced by the Greeks. Olives, as we know them today in the form used to flavour dishes typical of the Mediterranean region, were not known at that time.
The reason is simple - the fresh fruits are inedible because of their unpleasant bitter flavour. This hitter flavour disappears only after lengthy immersion in water that is changed repeatedly, or after pickling in brine for several months. How and when this treatment was discovered we do not know, nor do we know whether our taste was enriched by chance or by man's ingenuity.
There are many species of wild poppies but the opium poppy has never been found growing in the wild. In all probability it was bred from the wild species P. setigerum, native to the Mediterranean region. It is a useful plant for many reasons. The pharmaceutical industry processes the juice (opium) which exudes from cuts on the unripe capsules, and obtains morphine and many other opium alkaloids from the empty, dry capsules. The ripe seeds yield the edible oil called `olivette' by the French and a lower quality industrial oil used in synthetic dyes.
Parsley is a biennial herb native to the Mediterranean region. It is propagated by seeds that germinate several weeks after sowing. A leafy rosette is formed in the first year; this may be picked from June until winter. The second year it produces a flowering stem up to I m (3 ft) high and after the seeds have ripened it dies.
Two types are cultivated: the one for its curly leaves, used for flavouring and as a garnish, the other for its fleshy root, commonly used as a vegetable. In the autumn the plants may be put in pots, thus ensuring a continual supply of fresh leaves, rich in Vitamin C, throughout the winter. As cooking destroys vitamins it is recommended to add the chopped leaves just before serving
In the first century B.C. the largest producer of olive oil was Italy, where the olive tree was introduced by the Greeks. Olives, as we know them today in the form used to flavour dishes typical of the Mediterranean region, were not known at that time.
The reason is simple - the fresh fruits are inedible because of their unpleasant bitter flavour. This hitter flavour disappears only after lengthy immersion in water that is changed repeatedly, or after pickling in brine for several months. How and when this treatment was discovered we do not know, nor do we know whether our taste was enriched by chance or by man's ingenuity.
There are many species of wild poppies but the opium poppy has never been found growing in the wild. In all probability it was bred from the wild species P. setigerum, native to the Mediterranean region. It is a useful plant for many reasons. The pharmaceutical industry processes the juice (opium) which exudes from cuts on the unripe capsules, and obtains morphine and many other opium alkaloids from the empty, dry capsules. The ripe seeds yield the edible oil called `olivette' by the French and a lower quality industrial oil used in synthetic dyes.
Parsley is a biennial herb native to the Mediterranean region. It is propagated by seeds that germinate several weeks after sowing. A leafy rosette is formed in the first year; this may be picked from June until winter. The second year it produces a flowering stem up to I m (3 ft) high and after the seeds have ripened it dies.
Two types are cultivated: the one for its curly leaves, used for flavouring and as a garnish, the other for its fleshy root, commonly used as a vegetable. In the autumn the plants may be put in pots, thus ensuring a continual supply of fresh leaves, rich in Vitamin C, throughout the winter. As cooking destroys vitamins it is recommended to add the chopped leaves just before serving
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