What was the food supply like in ancient Egypt?
A large variety of vegetables were grown, including onions, garlic, leeks, beans, lentils, peas, radishes, cabbage, cucumbers and lettuce. There were also fruits, such as dates, figs, pomegranates, melons and grapes, and honey was produced for sweetening desserts.
Where did ancient Egypt get their food?
The Egyptians grew their crops along the banks of the River Nile on the rich black soil, or kemet which was left behind after the yearly floods. The fertile soil was ideal to grow healthy crops.
What did the poor eat in ancient Egypt?
Poor Egyptians only ate meat on special occasions but ate fish and poultry more often. The picture (above) shows ancient Egyptians hunting for fish and birds in the reeds that grew on the banks of the Nile. Meat, fish and poultry was roasted or boiled.
How did ancient Egyptians keep their food fresh?
There were several ways of preserving meats available to the ancient Egyptians – drying, salting (dry and wet), smoking, a combination of any of these methods, pemmicaning, or using fat, beer, or honey curing.
What natural resource was so scarce in ancient Egypt?
One natural resource Egypt lacked was good quality timber. Although palm trees were used in construction, other native trees, such as sycamore, acacia and tamarisk, were usually too knotty and brittle to be used in construction or for top quality decorations. Instead, these trees were used for firewood and charcoal.
What are the main crops grown in Egypt?
Rice is one of the major field crops, grown on nearly 500 000 feddans, and is considered the second most important export crop after cotton. Wheat is the major winter cereal grain crop and the third major crop in terms of area planted (about 600 000 feddans).
What did Tutankhamun eat?
Their staple diet was bread, vegetables, fowl and even beer. If you were richer, you could afford port, mutton or wine. Tutankhamun himself would have eaten animals he’d hunted himself, such as ox. “These dishes are yummy but there’s something different about them,” says Jackie.
Did ancient Egypt have rice?
Besides wheat and barley, they grew a variety of produce that included onions, garlic, lettuce, mallow (a leafy green), green onions, radishes, cucumbers, cabbage, turnips, artichokes, chickpeas, lentils, broad beans, olives and rice.
How did Egypt store food for 7 years?
During the seven years of abundance the land produced plentifully. Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities. In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it.