Immerse yourself in history and gastronomy with the extraordinary discovery of a 5,000 -year -old old -fashioned bread recipe, resurrected in a Turkish bakery. This archaeological find, much more than a simple curiosity, arouses a real local enthusiasm and questions today’s agricultural practices. In September 2024, during excavations in Küllüoba Höyüğü, near Eskişehir in Turkey, archaeologists uncovered a piece of charred bread, reports the Gizmodo online media.
Buried about 5,000 years ago below the threshold of a house, this bread is exceptionally well preserved. Since March 28, he has been exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of Eskişehir. Murat Türktaki, director of excavations, affirms in an interview with AFP: “It is the oldest bread ever discovered during an excavation and it has largely kept its shape.”
The recipe for ancient bread
The analysis reveals an original composition: starch flour (an old variety of wheat), lentil seeds and a vegetable sheet used as a natural rising agent. Bread, flat like a pancake and discoid shape, measures approximately 12.7 cm in diameter.
Intrigued, the local authorities contacted the Halk Ekmek bakery in Eskişehir, which best reproduced this millennial bread. In the absence of the starch seeds available, the bakers used Kavilca wheat – a nearby variety -, bulgur and lenses to get closer to the original recipe.
The result? A appreciated taste bread, which is all the rage. The first batch has passed in a few hours. Since then, the bakery has sold approximately 300 Küllüoba breads per day, at the price of 50 Turkish reads (around 1.30 euro) part, thanks to a municipal subsidy.
This bread also has an ecological asset. It is made from drought -resistant crops, such as Kavilca wheat. A crucial point in a country where we often cultivate plants gourmet water such as corn or sunflower. “Our ancestors give us a lesson. Like them, we should favor less thirsty cultures ”explains Ayşe ünlüce, mayor of Eskişehir.
The rebirth of this millennial bread is a story of taste, memory and sustainable agriculture. A homecoming that seduces the taste buds as much as the spirits.
