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Description
Global History in 15 Latin American Foods traces the paths by which 15 ingredients, from corn to chiles, and from guava to gum, made their way from Precolumbian Latin America to world cuisine today.
Why is the bird on your Thanksgiving table called a turkey? What does the potato tell us about the dangers of globalization? And how did the age of industrialization give us the chocolate bars we know and love today? Placing these foods, and others, at the center of a global network, it highlights some of the most important historical trends of the last 500 years, from the age of exploration through the Enlightenment, industrialization, empire-building and decolonisation.
Putting Latin America at the center of global processes in modern world history, and highlighting surprising origins of enduring cultural traditions and myths, Global History in 15 Latin American Foods offers a new perspective on the making of the modern world, food and commodities studies, environmental history and more.
Table of Contents
Part I: The 16th Century: Initial Connections
1. Corn in Europe: The Columbian Connection
2. Cooking Lessons: Manioc in Africa
3. The Road Less Travelled: Papaya in the Philippines
Part II: The 17th Century: Extended Journeys and Unexpected Paths
4. A Gateway to the Far East: Guava in India
5. Why did the Turkey Cross the Atlantic-Twice? Turkeys in New England
6. I say Tomato, You say Tomatl: Tomatoes in Italy
Part III: The 18th Century: The Rise of Science, Technology, and Industrialization
7. The Science Behind Sweet Potatoes: Exploration and Economic Botany in the 18th Century
8. The Beginning of the End: Chocolate Production in 18th Century Boston
9. Wealth and Welcome: Pineapples in Scotland
Part IV: The 19th Century: Global Innovations and Transformations
10. Nothing Plain about It: Bees, Orchids, and Vanilla Production in the Indian Ocean
11. Nine Pounds: The Potato in Ireland
12: Gin and Tonic: Quinine as the Anti-Malarial Fuel of Empires
Part V: The 20th Century: Propaganda and Politics
13. Junk Mail: Chicle in America's Mailboxes
14. Peanut Propaganda: Pad Thai and the Commercialization of Peanuts in Thailand
15: The Spice is Right: The Chile Pepper in Chinese Cuisine
Conclusion
Product details
| Published | 10 Dec 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 272 |
| ISBN | 9781350413634 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Series | History in 15 |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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