Journey of Food

Imagine India without its iconic curries, Italy without tomato tossed pastas or a cold winter’s night without a mug of hot chocolate. These and many other modern cuisines grace our plates and our taste buds thanks to the Native Americans.

Indigenous peoples of the Americas cultivated tomatoes, potatoes, cacao, peppers, corn, peanuts, sweet potatoes and numerous other crops that transformed the world. The process of selectively breeding these crops to optimize them for human consumption took place over generations and across many tribes. Once these and other foods cultivated by native peoples began to travel around the world, they had an indelible impact on world cuisines, populations and culture.

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animated infographic about plants domesticated by Native Americans that reads "Native Americans domesticated plants the provide 60% of the food consumed in the world today. Plants domesticated by Native Americans traveled the world, resulting in the creation of many iconic cuisines."

animated infographic about the pepper that reads "Peppers originated around Bolivia and southern Brazil. Peppers reached India in 1542, resulting in the curries associated with Indian food today.

animated infographic about the potato that reads "Originally from Peru and adopted by the Irish as a dietary staple, potatoes are dense in calories. When combined with butter and milk, they provide basic nutrients for human survival."

animated infographic about tomatoes that reads "Thought to have been first cultivated in Central America, one of the first recipes using tomato in Italy appeared in 1692."

animated infographic about the cocoa and vanilla beans that reads "Chocolate drinks flavored with vanilla bean quickly became a favorite among European royalty. These two crops were commonly cultivated by the Aztecs."

Journey of Food

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