1 00:00:00,367 --> 00:00:03,117 (pleasant music) 2 00:00:05,290 --> 00:00:06,640 New York City. 3 00:00:08,720 --> 00:00:10,790 On the street corners, and in the neighborhoods 4 00:00:10,790 --> 00:00:13,303 of this epicenter of multiculturalism, 5 00:00:14,860 --> 00:00:18,080 delicious aromas waft into the streets. 6 00:00:18,080 --> 00:00:21,403 Tantalizing cuisines and flavors from around the world. 7 00:00:22,300 --> 00:00:25,460 But there's one cuisine that is loved above all 8 00:00:25,460 --> 00:00:27,350 in the good old US of A. 9 00:00:28,570 --> 00:00:32,150 There are no less than 59,000 Mexican restaurants 10 00:00:32,150 --> 00:00:33,563 strewn across the country, 11 00:00:35,370 --> 00:00:37,970 and in a quiet corner of Brooklyn, 12 00:00:37,970 --> 00:00:40,083 there is something special. 13 00:00:40,083 --> 00:00:41,460 (flames crackling) 14 00:00:41,460 --> 00:00:42,803 This is Claro. 15 00:00:44,040 --> 00:00:46,773 The chef, T.J. Steele. 16 00:00:48,340 --> 00:00:51,240 Claro is a Oaxacan-inspired restaurant. 17 00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:54,000 We do kind of a modern New York take 18 00:00:54,000 --> 00:00:56,203 on some Oaxacan classics. 19 00:00:57,290 --> 00:00:58,733 A side of rice. 20 00:00:59,930 --> 00:01:01,683 A blue corn tortilla. 21 00:01:02,700 --> 00:01:04,193 A bevy of mushrooms. 22 00:01:05,370 --> 00:01:06,673 Homemade chorizo. 23 00:01:08,900 --> 00:01:10,633 Fresh made cheese. 24 00:01:12,120 --> 00:01:14,603 A splash of spicy salsa. 25 00:01:15,690 --> 00:01:17,093 I know what you're thinking. 26 00:01:18,571 --> 00:01:20,533 Mm, tacos. 27 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:25,313 But this is not just a classic Mexican meal. 28 00:01:26,340 --> 00:01:30,483 Every mouthful tells the story of human history. 29 00:01:31,600 --> 00:01:33,410 Each of these ingredients, 30 00:01:33,410 --> 00:01:36,270 the grains, meats, cheeses, 31 00:01:36,270 --> 00:01:39,223 fruits and vegetables, reveals another chapter 32 00:01:39,223 --> 00:01:41,053 in our shared story. 33 00:01:43,150 --> 00:01:47,770 Together, they symbolize 12,000 years of innovation, 34 00:01:47,770 --> 00:01:51,690 invention, selection, and serendipity 35 00:01:51,690 --> 00:01:55,139 known as the agricultural revolution. 36 00:01:55,139 --> 00:01:57,889 (dramatic music) 37 00:02:03,191 --> 00:02:05,890 (soothing music) 38 00:02:05,890 --> 00:02:08,650 For the vast majority of human existence, 39 00:02:08,650 --> 00:02:10,510 we were nomads. 40 00:02:10,510 --> 00:02:12,460 In pursuit of the next meal, 41 00:02:12,460 --> 00:02:15,110 our ancient ancestors roamed the Earth, 42 00:02:15,110 --> 00:02:18,063 seeking ample game and bountiful flora. 43 00:02:20,670 --> 00:02:24,043 We harnessed the power of fire to cook our meals. 44 00:02:26,460 --> 00:02:29,430 Then, for 100 centuries, 45 00:02:29,430 --> 00:02:33,653 we endured and survived a global Ice Age. 46 00:02:34,860 --> 00:02:39,290 So, how did we get from this frozen world 47 00:02:40,550 --> 00:02:41,913 to taco Tuesday? 48 00:02:42,919 --> 00:02:46,480 (wind whistling) 49 00:02:46,480 --> 00:02:50,010 Charlotte Lusty is a member of the Global Crop Trust, 50 00:02:50,010 --> 00:02:52,050 working in Svalbard to preserve 51 00:02:52,050 --> 00:02:56,310 the last 12,000 years of agricultural history. 52 00:02:56,310 --> 00:02:58,700 (gentle piano music) (birds chirping) 53 00:02:58,700 --> 00:03:00,470 In the early years of agriculture, 54 00:03:00,470 --> 00:03:02,430 there were people who were understanding 55 00:03:02,430 --> 00:03:05,730 and learning how to cultivate wild plants, 56 00:03:05,730 --> 00:03:08,070 and in doing that they cultivated plants 57 00:03:08,070 --> 00:03:11,361 that were delicious to eat in sufficient amounts 58 00:03:11,361 --> 00:03:15,160 that allowed them to develop cities and towns 59 00:03:15,160 --> 00:03:17,370 and civilizations. 60 00:03:17,370 --> 00:03:19,890 (pleasant music) 61 00:03:19,890 --> 00:03:22,010 Whether you're talking in the Far East, 62 00:03:22,010 --> 00:03:24,671 or Egyptian, Greek, Roman, 63 00:03:24,671 --> 00:03:28,890 Aztec, Inca, they were all based on 64 00:03:28,890 --> 00:03:31,583 brilliant farmers who were producing enough food 65 00:03:31,583 --> 00:03:33,523 to allow society. 66 00:03:34,920 --> 00:03:39,070 So it was a fundamental part of our evolution as humans 67 00:03:39,070 --> 00:03:41,890 to become great farmers. 68 00:03:41,890 --> 00:03:44,490 This Fertile Crescent of the Middle East 69 00:03:44,490 --> 00:03:48,240 would come to be known as the cradle of civilization, 70 00:03:48,240 --> 00:03:51,033 and is regarded as the birthplace of writing, 71 00:03:51,970 --> 00:03:55,920 trade, math, 72 00:03:55,920 --> 00:03:57,233 and organized religion. 73 00:03:58,830 --> 00:04:02,493 And all of this springs from the advent of agriculture. 74 00:04:05,690 --> 00:04:08,440 (pleasant music) 75 00:04:11,970 --> 00:04:14,480 The success of farming meant we finally 76 00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:17,370 had a reason to stop our perennial wanderings 77 00:04:17,370 --> 00:04:19,120 and begin to settle down, 78 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:21,653 and try to make an honest species of ourselves. 79 00:04:22,680 --> 00:04:25,850 As our society becomes totally dependent 80 00:04:25,850 --> 00:04:28,653 on agriculture, that really does change the game. 81 00:04:30,370 --> 00:04:32,100 Agriculture is a tremendous blessing 82 00:04:32,100 --> 00:04:34,630 in the sense that it enables societies 83 00:04:34,630 --> 00:04:36,430 to produce a lot more food, 84 00:04:36,430 --> 00:04:38,943 and therefore to sustain a lot more population. 85 00:04:40,780 --> 00:04:42,950 Where it had taken 5,000 acres 86 00:04:42,950 --> 00:04:46,270 to support each member of a hunter gatherer community, 87 00:04:46,270 --> 00:04:48,590 the same amount of land could feed 88 00:04:48,590 --> 00:04:52,223 5,000 people in an agrarian society. 89 00:04:53,770 --> 00:04:56,270 Agriculture provided us with a surplus 90 00:04:56,270 --> 00:05:00,090 of grains, vegetables, and livestock. 91 00:05:00,090 --> 00:05:01,930 And the population of the planet 92 00:05:01,930 --> 00:05:05,417 went from five million people 10,000 years ago 93 00:05:05,417 --> 00:05:08,183 to more than seven billion today. 94 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:12,958 Agriculture also makes possible 95 00:05:12,958 --> 00:05:16,123 a wider range of specialized activities. 96 00:05:17,449 --> 00:05:19,290 That's something you couldn't have had, 97 00:05:19,290 --> 00:05:21,550 and you can't have in a pre-agrarian 98 00:05:21,550 --> 00:05:23,623 or non-agrarian society. 99 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:26,370 People did not have to be 100 00:05:26,370 --> 00:05:29,490 directly involved in producing food. 101 00:05:29,490 --> 00:05:33,100 Instead, they could become craftsmen, 102 00:05:33,100 --> 00:05:35,663 artists, religious leaders, 103 00:05:36,540 --> 00:05:38,974 or chefs. 104 00:05:38,974 --> 00:05:41,724 (pleasant music) 105 00:05:43,460 --> 00:05:44,293 Cooking is something that 106 00:05:44,293 --> 00:05:45,750 there was never really another choice for me. 107 00:05:45,750 --> 00:05:48,000 It was the only thing I ever thought that I would do, 108 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:51,452 or wanted to do, and really enjoy doing. 109 00:05:51,452 --> 00:05:54,470 (pleasant music) 110 00:05:54,470 --> 00:05:56,670 I think it's hard to get authentic 111 00:05:56,670 --> 00:05:59,100 regional Mexican food in New York. 112 00:05:59,100 --> 00:06:00,400 Even in the states in general 113 00:06:00,400 --> 00:06:02,780 I think people kind of clump 114 00:06:02,780 --> 00:06:05,253 all of Mexico's greatest hits into one. 115 00:06:07,010 --> 00:06:08,330 What we do here is a little different 116 00:06:08,330 --> 00:06:11,160 because we focus on the region of Oaxaca, 117 00:06:11,160 --> 00:06:13,920 which in itself has many different subregions 118 00:06:13,920 --> 00:06:15,258 and lots of different kind of 119 00:06:15,258 --> 00:06:17,656 cuisine that come together there. 120 00:06:17,656 --> 00:06:20,866 (pleasant music) 121 00:06:20,866 --> 00:06:21,699 I think one of the things that I found 122 00:06:21,699 --> 00:06:24,483 when I went to Mexico was a lot more soul in the food. 123 00:06:25,810 --> 00:06:28,970 I felt an emotional attachment to Mexican food. 124 00:06:28,970 --> 00:06:30,940 I think that it spoke a lot more to 125 00:06:32,020 --> 00:06:34,993 my soul and what I was feeling towards food. 126 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:40,780 I can take all of the 127 00:06:40,780 --> 00:06:45,360 relationships, ideas, food experiences, 128 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:47,840 everything from my time in Oaxaca 129 00:06:47,840 --> 00:06:50,240 and kind of just bring it here in New York 130 00:06:50,240 --> 00:06:52,780 and kind of share it with everyone. 131 00:06:52,780 --> 00:06:56,500 T.J.'s Oaxacan meal begins with a side of rice, 132 00:06:56,500 --> 00:06:59,533 the staple accompaniment to many a Mexican meal. 133 00:07:01,090 --> 00:07:03,780 The cuisines and civilizations of the world 134 00:07:03,780 --> 00:07:06,240 were shaped most influentially 135 00:07:06,240 --> 00:07:09,343 by the magical transformations of their native grasses. 136 00:07:10,213 --> 00:07:12,963 (pleasant music) 137 00:07:14,350 --> 00:07:17,680 One of the great kinds of food magic 138 00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:19,760 is the transformation of grasses, 139 00:07:19,760 --> 00:07:22,313 'cause that's really what we're talking about. 140 00:07:23,287 --> 00:07:27,713 The great staples of the world wheat, maize, barley, rice. 141 00:07:29,100 --> 00:07:33,650 All the other food sources that started as wild grasses 142 00:07:33,650 --> 00:07:38,080 and which humans turned into edible food and drink 143 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:39,940 by cultivation, 144 00:07:39,940 --> 00:07:42,830 by selecting, by breeding, 145 00:07:42,830 --> 00:07:45,693 and have consumed now for thousands of years. 146 00:07:47,980 --> 00:07:50,400 Our journey through agricultural history 147 00:07:50,400 --> 00:07:53,700 begins in Asia, where one ingredient 148 00:07:53,700 --> 00:07:57,673 has always dominated the cuisine, rice. 149 00:07:58,600 --> 00:08:00,850 It is believed that humans have been selecting 150 00:08:00,850 --> 00:08:02,830 and influencing rice evolution 151 00:08:02,830 --> 00:08:05,900 since the Chinese first started cultivating it 152 00:08:05,900 --> 00:08:08,617 around 7000 BCE. 153 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:13,310 Today, rice is the primary crop and staple 154 00:08:13,310 --> 00:08:15,623 of more than half the world's population. 155 00:08:18,549 --> 00:08:21,410 (rice burbling) 156 00:08:21,410 --> 00:08:23,510 While rice is our side dish, 157 00:08:23,510 --> 00:08:26,993 for many rice is at the heart of every meal. 158 00:08:28,107 --> 00:08:29,470 (burner clicks) 159 00:08:29,470 --> 00:08:31,267 I knew that was gonna happen. 160 00:08:31,267 --> 00:08:32,100 (JJ laughs) 161 00:08:32,100 --> 00:08:33,810 Hey what's up, I'm JJ Johnson, 162 00:08:33,810 --> 00:08:35,383 and I love to cook rice. 163 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:38,360 If I had to define culture through food, 164 00:08:38,360 --> 00:08:40,100 I would say culture is rice. 165 00:08:40,100 --> 00:08:41,620 It's really at the center of the table, 166 00:08:41,620 --> 00:08:43,703 regardless of where you go in the world. 167 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:46,130 Rice is the common ingredient, 168 00:08:46,130 --> 00:08:47,780 and then you develop that flavor profile 169 00:08:47,780 --> 00:08:49,100 how you want it to be, 170 00:08:49,100 --> 00:08:52,289 based off who you are, where you're from in the world. 171 00:08:52,289 --> 00:08:53,830 (upbeat music) 172 00:08:53,830 --> 00:08:56,230 I'm all about the mother grains of the world. 173 00:08:56,230 --> 00:08:59,090 There's all these rices that fuel the world 174 00:08:59,090 --> 00:09:01,143 that have all these amazing stories to it 175 00:09:01,143 --> 00:09:03,601 that everybody forgot about. 176 00:09:03,601 --> 00:09:06,184 (oil sizzling) 177 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:10,140 Despite its enduring popularity, 178 00:09:10,140 --> 00:09:14,283 today rice is nowhere near as varied as it once was. 179 00:09:16,350 --> 00:09:19,000 Most supermarkets are limited to white rice, 180 00:09:19,000 --> 00:09:20,930 brown rice, long grain, 181 00:09:20,930 --> 00:09:23,490 short grain, jasmine, 182 00:09:23,490 --> 00:09:24,490 and that's about it. 183 00:09:25,600 --> 00:09:28,913 But rice is infinitely more diverse than that. 184 00:09:30,840 --> 00:09:33,913 We have over 100,000 distinct varieties of rice. 185 00:09:33,913 --> 00:09:36,590 That would be the highest diversity 186 00:09:36,590 --> 00:09:38,690 of any of the plant kingdom. 187 00:09:38,690 --> 00:09:41,460 And almost no one gets to experience it. 188 00:09:41,460 --> 00:09:43,600 If you're into flavor, like I am, 189 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:45,535 the more diversity the better. 190 00:09:45,535 --> 00:09:48,285 (pleasant music) 191 00:09:49,830 --> 00:09:53,020 Glenn Roberts is the founder of Anson Mills, 192 00:09:53,020 --> 00:09:56,260 a company dedicated to the cultivation and preservation 193 00:09:56,260 --> 00:09:59,423 of grains and seeds from bygone eras. 194 00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:02,830 From the black tribute rice 195 00:10:02,830 --> 00:10:05,630 used to pay taxes to Chinese emperors, 196 00:10:05,630 --> 00:10:07,590 all the way to the grandfather 197 00:10:07,590 --> 00:10:11,621 of long rice in the Americas, Carolina Gold. 198 00:10:11,621 --> 00:10:14,190 (pleasant music) 199 00:10:14,190 --> 00:10:17,650 We are first and foremost rice people. 200 00:10:17,650 --> 00:10:21,440 What I have here, this is a ton of Carolina Gold rice seed, 201 00:10:21,440 --> 00:10:23,537 and this is our production rice 202 00:10:23,537 --> 00:10:25,803 and our main thing that we do. 203 00:10:28,100 --> 00:10:30,283 Bottom line is extraordinary rice. 204 00:10:31,227 --> 00:10:33,007 One of the most beautiful foods you can imagine. 205 00:10:33,007 --> 00:10:35,810 (soothing music) 206 00:10:35,810 --> 00:10:37,810 We have lots of different rices. 207 00:10:37,810 --> 00:10:40,400 We only grow heirloom grains. 208 00:10:40,400 --> 00:10:42,240 All of our plants are from eras 209 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:44,490 all the way back to the dawn of civilization. 210 00:10:45,580 --> 00:10:47,030 One of the grains we work with 211 00:10:47,030 --> 00:10:49,963 is 22,000 years old supposedly on carbon dating. 212 00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:53,720 Those foods are spectacular, 213 00:10:53,720 --> 00:10:55,324 and part of what we've been doing 214 00:10:55,324 --> 00:10:58,220 is trying to bring them back. 215 00:10:58,220 --> 00:11:00,870 It's hard work and it's really exacting work, 216 00:11:00,870 --> 00:11:02,893 but it's also very very rewarding. 217 00:11:04,610 --> 00:11:06,930 Glenn has spent the last two decades 218 00:11:06,930 --> 00:11:09,290 working with scientists to bring heirloom 219 00:11:09,290 --> 00:11:12,373 and ancient grains back to our dinner tables. 220 00:11:14,510 --> 00:11:17,652 There's a big cognition now in modern times 221 00:11:17,652 --> 00:11:20,163 of the fact that heirlooms are important, 222 00:11:21,290 --> 00:11:24,450 because in old crops, landrace and heirloom crops, 223 00:11:24,450 --> 00:11:26,540 flavor equals nutrition. 224 00:11:26,540 --> 00:11:28,725 So you're looking for the highest flavor. 225 00:11:28,725 --> 00:11:31,475 (pleasant music) 226 00:11:37,940 --> 00:11:39,640 This might not even fit in here. 227 00:11:40,690 --> 00:11:42,710 Rice is everything. 228 00:11:42,710 --> 00:11:45,460 It is truly what I feel 229 00:11:45,460 --> 00:11:49,610 is the most casual common ingredient in the world, 230 00:11:49,610 --> 00:11:51,713 and I think since it's so casual, 231 00:11:52,780 --> 00:11:54,060 we all forget 232 00:11:55,130 --> 00:11:56,833 that it really fuels our soul. 233 00:11:57,950 --> 00:11:59,170 At the end of the day it doesn't matter 234 00:11:59,170 --> 00:12:01,290 if you're a king or a president, 235 00:12:01,290 --> 00:12:03,153 a maid, a chef, 236 00:12:04,270 --> 00:12:06,463 rice is just something that we all know. 237 00:12:08,070 --> 00:12:11,290 This beautifully engineered grain of grass 238 00:12:11,290 --> 00:12:14,653 remains the staple of dinners around the world. 239 00:12:16,650 --> 00:12:18,820 Onto the main course. 240 00:12:18,820 --> 00:12:19,780 Today we're going to be cooking 241 00:12:19,780 --> 00:12:21,833 some memelas on the comal. 242 00:12:23,280 --> 00:12:27,460 The base of our historic meal, the tortilla, 243 00:12:27,460 --> 00:12:29,350 is made of another grass, 244 00:12:29,350 --> 00:12:31,020 which has towered in importance 245 00:12:31,020 --> 00:12:33,113 throughout Central American history. 246 00:12:34,040 --> 00:12:35,393 Maize, or corn. 247 00:12:38,840 --> 00:12:40,319 One of the first things that I noticed 248 00:12:40,319 --> 00:12:43,477 getting to Oaxaca was the quality of the corn, 249 00:12:43,477 --> 00:12:44,580 and the masa. 250 00:12:44,580 --> 00:12:48,800 Even just a tortilla is like super satisfying. 251 00:12:48,800 --> 00:12:50,210 It's kind of how people would talk about 252 00:12:50,210 --> 00:12:53,170 like a great French baguette or a croissant or something. 253 00:12:53,170 --> 00:12:55,480 You're like wow, if you haven't had that corn before 254 00:12:55,480 --> 00:12:57,370 I don't know that you've ever had 255 00:12:57,370 --> 00:12:59,668 the proper experience with a tortilla. 256 00:12:59,668 --> 00:13:02,970 (soothing music) 257 00:13:02,970 --> 00:13:04,820 Maize was the foundation 258 00:13:04,820 --> 00:13:07,313 of the great empires of Central America. 259 00:13:08,380 --> 00:13:10,610 Including the Aztecs of Mexico 260 00:13:10,610 --> 00:13:12,283 and the Inca of Peru. 261 00:13:13,980 --> 00:13:17,070 The oldest remains left from a meal of maize 262 00:13:17,070 --> 00:13:19,653 were found in the Tehuacan Valley of Mexico. 263 00:13:21,170 --> 00:13:23,320 The tiny ears had been gnawed on 264 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:25,493 over 5,000 years ago. 265 00:13:28,140 --> 00:13:30,550 When farmers took wild plants 266 00:13:30,550 --> 00:13:32,060 and developed things that 267 00:13:32,060 --> 00:13:34,390 they could eat in large quantities, 268 00:13:34,390 --> 00:13:37,200 they had to leave behind certain aspects 269 00:13:37,200 --> 00:13:40,010 of the wild species that weren't so helpful. 270 00:13:40,010 --> 00:13:42,390 So they had to keep selecting plants 271 00:13:42,390 --> 00:13:45,003 until they had what was useful to them. 272 00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:47,710 It's a similar thing that's happened 273 00:13:47,710 --> 00:13:49,190 in human evolution, 274 00:13:49,190 --> 00:13:53,310 because human diversity is not very great. 275 00:13:53,310 --> 00:13:55,390 And what is absolutely astounding 276 00:13:55,390 --> 00:13:57,463 is there's probably more genetic diversity 277 00:13:57,463 --> 00:14:01,270 in a field of traditional maize varieties 278 00:14:01,270 --> 00:14:03,816 than there is in the entire human race. 279 00:14:03,816 --> 00:14:06,566 (soothing music) 280 00:14:08,910 --> 00:14:12,470 Maize is derived from a grass called teosinte, 281 00:14:12,470 --> 00:14:15,400 which is indigenous to Central Mexico. 282 00:14:15,400 --> 00:14:17,270 The difference between teosinte 283 00:14:17,270 --> 00:14:20,090 and modern maize is remarkable. 284 00:14:20,090 --> 00:14:24,460 With human help, this humble plant evolved, 285 00:14:24,460 --> 00:14:27,070 as bigger ears with fatter kernels 286 00:14:27,070 --> 00:14:28,913 were selected and planted. 287 00:14:30,890 --> 00:14:34,020 And corn, or maize, has never waned 288 00:14:34,020 --> 00:14:36,517 in its importance to Central America. 289 00:14:36,517 --> 00:14:38,135 (gentle piano music) 290 00:14:38,135 --> 00:14:41,635 (speaks foreign language) 291 00:15:22,491 --> 00:15:25,140 To the civilizations of Central America, 292 00:15:25,140 --> 00:15:27,470 maize was both the source of life, 293 00:15:27,470 --> 00:15:28,963 and the reason for living. 294 00:15:30,350 --> 00:15:33,880 It was food, economy, nutrition, 295 00:15:33,880 --> 00:15:36,223 and flavor all in one. 296 00:15:37,410 --> 00:15:40,400 The Mayans didn't just subsist on maize, 297 00:15:40,400 --> 00:15:42,502 they came from maize. 298 00:15:42,502 --> 00:15:45,490 (intense music) 299 00:15:45,490 --> 00:15:47,876 The Aztecs and their gods exchanged 300 00:15:47,876 --> 00:15:51,160 their most precious possessions. 301 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:54,623 Human hearts for the heart of corn. 302 00:15:56,125 --> 00:15:58,792 (thunder booms) 303 00:16:00,510 --> 00:16:04,740 The basic rule I think is very easily understood. 304 00:16:04,740 --> 00:16:07,340 The food which feeds humanity, 305 00:16:07,340 --> 00:16:09,180 so that becomes your god. 306 00:16:09,180 --> 00:16:11,360 That's the food that you have to acknowledge 307 00:16:11,360 --> 00:16:13,443 that you are very grateful to. 308 00:16:14,640 --> 00:16:17,057 (bells toll) 309 00:16:19,288 --> 00:16:22,788 (speaks foreign language) 310 00:16:46,771 --> 00:16:49,040 (gentle piano music) 311 00:16:49,040 --> 00:16:51,700 Since corn in Oaxaca has always been 312 00:16:51,700 --> 00:16:54,930 such a staple part of the diet and the culture here, 313 00:16:54,930 --> 00:16:57,551 there might be a little bit more respect for it. 314 00:16:57,551 --> 00:17:00,740 (gentle piano music) 315 00:17:00,740 --> 00:17:02,670 Haven't been able to find any corn in the states 316 00:17:02,670 --> 00:17:04,010 that comes close to anything 317 00:17:04,010 --> 00:17:05,720 that's going on down here in Mexico 318 00:17:05,720 --> 00:17:09,210 as far as flavor and starch content, and even aroma. 319 00:17:09,210 --> 00:17:12,100 Everything that we're looking for at the restaurant 320 00:17:12,100 --> 00:17:14,000 is in the corn that we find down here. 321 00:17:17,329 --> 00:17:20,079 (pleasant music) 322 00:17:22,890 --> 00:17:24,840 The ancient practice of soaking 323 00:17:24,840 --> 00:17:27,190 and boiling corn with white lime, 324 00:17:27,190 --> 00:17:30,450 releases amino acids and vitamin B, 325 00:17:30,450 --> 00:17:32,153 and makes it easier to grind. 326 00:17:35,107 --> 00:17:38,607 (speaks foreign language) 327 00:17:48,070 --> 00:17:50,340 This difficult process is necessary 328 00:17:50,340 --> 00:17:52,070 in the quest for the building block 329 00:17:52,070 --> 00:17:56,133 of every great Mexican meal, masa. 330 00:17:57,460 --> 00:17:59,893 And from masa, the tortilla. 331 00:18:01,784 --> 00:18:05,284 (speaks foreign language) 332 00:18:13,470 --> 00:18:16,377 T.J. is making a thick and hearty memela. 333 00:18:17,960 --> 00:18:21,103 But for the common taco, the tortilla is king. 334 00:18:22,860 --> 00:18:25,150 And in a year, the average Mexican 335 00:18:25,150 --> 00:18:28,563 consumes around 185 pounds of them. 336 00:18:30,067 --> 00:18:35,067 (flames crackling) (soothing music) 337 00:18:35,800 --> 00:18:38,370 The difference between something you would buy at a store 338 00:18:38,370 --> 00:18:39,670 and something that we're making here 339 00:18:39,670 --> 00:18:44,670 with no preservatives or additives to it is huge, 340 00:18:44,810 --> 00:18:46,640 like you can smell the difference, 341 00:18:46,640 --> 00:18:48,080 feel it, taste it, 342 00:18:48,080 --> 00:18:49,553 everything across the board. 343 00:18:51,720 --> 00:18:55,040 It can be fried, it can be cooked dry on a comal, 344 00:18:55,040 --> 00:18:57,203 it can be finished on a grill. 345 00:18:58,340 --> 00:19:00,066 You can see it in all different shapes 346 00:19:00,066 --> 00:19:05,066 from tortillas, tlayudas, memelas, all kinds of things. 347 00:19:05,770 --> 00:19:07,280 The possibilities are endless. 348 00:19:07,280 --> 00:19:08,773 Masa is life. 349 00:19:11,310 --> 00:19:13,640 Thanks to millennia of progress, 350 00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:16,163 we now have a steaming side of rice, 351 00:19:17,097 --> 00:19:19,935 and a blue corn memela. 352 00:19:19,935 --> 00:19:22,720 (pleasant music) 353 00:19:22,720 --> 00:19:25,670 Staple food sources rich in carbohydrates 354 00:19:25,670 --> 00:19:27,983 and vitamins changed the game. 355 00:19:28,830 --> 00:19:32,253 But the grass wasn't necessarily greener at first. 356 00:19:33,650 --> 00:19:35,680 When ancient people diverged from their 357 00:19:35,680 --> 00:19:38,460 hunter gatherer diets, and became dependent 358 00:19:38,460 --> 00:19:41,180 on a stable diet of great grasses, 359 00:19:41,180 --> 00:19:45,622 they began to pay a devastating biological price. 360 00:19:45,622 --> 00:19:48,289 (intense music) 361 00:19:51,590 --> 00:19:55,468 There's no progress without a kickback from fate. 362 00:19:55,468 --> 00:19:57,277 I mean that's life. 363 00:19:57,277 --> 00:20:00,210 And in the case of agriculture, 364 00:20:00,210 --> 00:20:03,170 in every early case of a society 365 00:20:03,170 --> 00:20:05,700 made them dependent on a single staple 366 00:20:05,700 --> 00:20:07,803 or a very limited range of staples. 367 00:20:08,940 --> 00:20:10,930 They were more rickety, they were shorter, 368 00:20:10,930 --> 00:20:14,480 they were feebler than their Paleolithic predecessors 369 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:17,233 who had relied on wild food. 370 00:20:19,130 --> 00:20:20,630 The fossil record reveals 371 00:20:20,630 --> 00:20:23,300 that humans' nutritional health declined 372 00:20:23,300 --> 00:20:26,113 as a direct result of this homogenized diet. 373 00:20:28,100 --> 00:20:31,450 Eating only grains every day gave early farmers 374 00:20:31,450 --> 00:20:34,250 cavities and periodontal disease, 375 00:20:34,250 --> 00:20:36,963 conditions rarely found in hunter gatherers. 376 00:20:37,960 --> 00:20:39,840 Despite their challenges, 377 00:20:39,840 --> 00:20:42,793 people didn't want to give up their new lifestyle. 378 00:20:43,770 --> 00:20:46,950 The diets of early farm dwellers diversified 379 00:20:46,950 --> 00:20:50,333 as the art of cultivation and domestication was honed. 380 00:20:52,130 --> 00:20:55,820 Grains were not agriculture's only gift. 381 00:20:55,820 --> 00:20:59,392 As we settled, hunters became herders. 382 00:20:59,392 --> 00:21:02,340 (intense music) 383 00:21:02,340 --> 00:21:05,990 Herd animals like cows, goats, sheep, 384 00:21:05,990 --> 00:21:08,992 pigs, horses, and camels 385 00:21:08,992 --> 00:21:12,843 provided easy access to protein through meat. 386 00:21:16,860 --> 00:21:21,140 Not only are people using these animals for food, 387 00:21:21,140 --> 00:21:23,590 they're creating new species 388 00:21:23,590 --> 00:21:27,030 by selecting from the wild varieties, 389 00:21:27,030 --> 00:21:29,730 keeping them together in one place, 390 00:21:29,730 --> 00:21:31,150 breeding from them, 391 00:21:31,150 --> 00:21:33,740 producing every bigger specimens 392 00:21:33,740 --> 00:21:36,480 for more food, more nutritional value, 393 00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:41,005 and that's what changes the pattern of evolution. 394 00:21:41,005 --> 00:21:43,620 (pleasant music) 395 00:21:43,620 --> 00:21:47,180 Humans are beginning to produce species 396 00:21:47,180 --> 00:21:49,840 that would not have existed, 397 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:54,083 and could not survive without human intervention. 398 00:21:54,083 --> 00:21:56,180 (cattle mooing) 399 00:21:56,180 --> 00:21:58,080 Cattle were first domesticated 400 00:21:58,080 --> 00:22:01,010 in the early Neolithic Period simultaneously 401 00:22:01,010 --> 00:22:03,633 in both the Middle East and parts of Eastern Europe. 402 00:22:04,950 --> 00:22:08,230 Wild chickens, indigenous to India and East Asia, 403 00:22:08,230 --> 00:22:11,295 were domesticated around 7,000 years ago. 404 00:22:11,295 --> 00:22:14,482 (rooster crows) 405 00:22:14,482 --> 00:22:17,680 And pigs descended from the Eurasian wild boar. 406 00:22:19,238 --> 00:22:24,160 Domestication led to culinary experimentation, 407 00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:25,970 allowing our love of meat 408 00:22:25,970 --> 00:22:28,573 to take on new forms and flavors. 409 00:22:30,106 --> 00:22:34,582 (singing in foreign language) 410 00:22:34,582 --> 00:22:37,082 (Latin music) 411 00:22:40,600 --> 00:22:41,937 Grilled meat's really popular in Oaxaca. 412 00:22:41,937 --> 00:22:44,560 You'll see traveling through the markets and stuff, 413 00:22:44,560 --> 00:22:46,023 there'll be a lot of little stands set up 414 00:22:46,023 --> 00:22:48,970 that might be a little old lady on the corner 415 00:22:48,970 --> 00:22:51,820 grilling up some meat and putting it on top of tortillas. 416 00:22:54,250 --> 00:22:57,510 You'll see a lot of stews or tacos de cazuela. 417 00:22:57,510 --> 00:22:59,570 These like beautiful earthenware pots 418 00:22:59,570 --> 00:23:01,720 that are full of stews and kind of pick what you want 419 00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:03,470 and they'll fill tortillas with it. 420 00:23:04,992 --> 00:23:06,340 (speaks foreign language) 421 00:23:06,340 --> 00:23:09,373 Right now we're looking at chorizo, Oaxacan style. 422 00:23:10,610 --> 00:23:12,920 This chorizo has tons of flavor. 423 00:23:12,920 --> 00:23:14,700 T.J. takes inspiration 424 00:23:14,700 --> 00:23:16,640 from the markets of Oaxaca 425 00:23:16,640 --> 00:23:19,013 and brings it to the tables of Brooklyn. 426 00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:21,410 Using better quality meats here 427 00:23:21,410 --> 00:23:24,920 has yielded us a product that reminds me more 428 00:23:24,920 --> 00:23:27,310 of food in Oaxaca because I think 429 00:23:27,310 --> 00:23:30,090 that they're all one step closer to the farm. 430 00:23:30,090 --> 00:23:32,993 So here I'm stirring up our housemade chorizo. 431 00:23:34,730 --> 00:23:36,940 And basically it's heritage pork meat, 432 00:23:36,940 --> 00:23:38,490 which is like an heirloom pork meat 433 00:23:38,490 --> 00:23:39,940 that we grind in house, 434 00:23:39,940 --> 00:23:42,720 and then we're adding in guajillos from Mexico, 435 00:23:42,720 --> 00:23:46,220 which is when it gets all of its nice red color from, 436 00:23:46,220 --> 00:23:49,504 and then for spices it's getting Mexican oregano, 437 00:23:49,504 --> 00:23:52,533 thyme, allspice, a little bit of cumin, 438 00:23:53,770 --> 00:23:56,160 some white vinegar, a little sugar and salt, 439 00:23:56,160 --> 00:23:57,133 and that's it. 440 00:23:57,133 --> 00:23:59,390 (flames crackling) (pleasant music) 441 00:23:59,390 --> 00:24:01,012 This spicy Mexican favorite 442 00:24:01,012 --> 00:24:03,943 will be the centerpiece of T.J.'s memela. 443 00:24:05,110 --> 00:24:07,883 But there are more stories to be told by this dish. 444 00:24:11,100 --> 00:24:14,180 As a species, our love affair with cheese 445 00:24:14,180 --> 00:24:16,453 predates recorded human history. 446 00:24:17,800 --> 00:24:19,350 Now we're gonna add a little bit of farm cheese 447 00:24:19,350 --> 00:24:20,420 that we make in house. 448 00:24:20,420 --> 00:24:23,210 Basically it's a fresh cheese, 449 00:24:23,210 --> 00:24:25,670 almost like a ricotta style cheese, 450 00:24:25,670 --> 00:24:27,220 and this is also something that's 451 00:24:27,220 --> 00:24:29,653 very typical to Mexico or Oaxaca. 452 00:24:31,780 --> 00:24:33,880 Cheese is thought to have originated 453 00:24:33,880 --> 00:24:37,580 when milk curdled while being transported in bladders 454 00:24:37,580 --> 00:24:39,833 made of the ruminant stomachs of cattle. 455 00:24:41,560 --> 00:24:44,453 It was love at first bite. 456 00:24:45,890 --> 00:24:49,360 Introduced to Europe by travelers from Asia, 457 00:24:49,360 --> 00:24:51,990 and to the New World by the pilgrim settlers, 458 00:24:51,990 --> 00:24:54,820 today cheeses from around the world 459 00:24:54,820 --> 00:24:58,355 differ wildly in their preparation and flavor. 460 00:24:58,355 --> 00:25:00,090 (pleasant music) 461 00:25:00,090 --> 00:25:02,280 It comes aged, 462 00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:04,200 stinky, 463 00:25:04,200 --> 00:25:06,110 creamy, 464 00:25:06,110 --> 00:25:07,800 soft, 465 00:25:07,800 --> 00:25:09,540 hard, 466 00:25:09,540 --> 00:25:10,663 and moldy. 467 00:25:11,800 --> 00:25:14,053 We make all of our own cheese in house. 468 00:25:15,290 --> 00:25:17,160 I think that you can taste the difference. 469 00:25:17,160 --> 00:25:18,910 You can taste the love and the care in it, 470 00:25:18,910 --> 00:25:21,320 and it really shows. 471 00:25:21,320 --> 00:25:26,080 This is a chorizo memela with some asiento bean paste, 472 00:25:26,080 --> 00:25:28,720 and then a housemade chorizo and potato 473 00:25:28,720 --> 00:25:32,003 with some fresh cheese on top and cilantro. 474 00:25:33,650 --> 00:25:35,730 Our first dish is up, 475 00:25:35,730 --> 00:25:38,653 but this Oaxacan feast isn't done yet. 476 00:25:40,206 --> 00:25:41,770 (pleasant music) 477 00:25:41,770 --> 00:25:45,070 As tasty as they are, we cannot survive 478 00:25:45,070 --> 00:25:47,146 on meats and cheeses alone. 479 00:25:47,146 --> 00:25:49,896 (pleasant music) 480 00:25:51,130 --> 00:25:54,010 There's a reason your parents always told you 481 00:25:54,010 --> 00:25:55,773 to eat your vegetables. 482 00:25:56,620 --> 00:25:58,498 Not only are they delicious, 483 00:25:58,498 --> 00:26:01,403 they're the cornerstone of nutrition. 484 00:26:03,400 --> 00:26:06,120 From apples to mangoes, 485 00:26:06,120 --> 00:26:09,030 onions to avocados, 486 00:26:09,030 --> 00:26:11,163 peppers to chiles, 487 00:26:12,020 --> 00:26:14,870 cultivation of regional fruits and veggies 488 00:26:14,870 --> 00:26:17,950 was essential to culinary culture. 489 00:26:17,950 --> 00:26:20,160 Going to Oaxaca and seeing the food down there, 490 00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:22,070 it kind of blew my mind how much flavor 491 00:26:22,070 --> 00:26:24,803 you can get out of something like a mushroom. 492 00:26:25,990 --> 00:26:28,240 These flavors can take you back to the earth. 493 00:26:29,400 --> 00:26:30,800 For the veggie lovers, 494 00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:34,637 T.J. is preparing his famous mushroom and pea shoot memela. 495 00:26:36,310 --> 00:26:37,320 I think mushrooms are fun 496 00:26:37,320 --> 00:26:39,790 because they kind of have the meatiness 497 00:26:39,790 --> 00:26:41,410 without having meat in them. 498 00:26:41,410 --> 00:26:44,610 These are all wild mushrooms that are in season. 499 00:26:44,610 --> 00:26:45,510 I like these mushrooms too, 500 00:26:45,510 --> 00:26:48,610 because they all have a different texture and color. 501 00:26:48,610 --> 00:26:50,203 Pink oyster, the blue foot. 502 00:26:51,420 --> 00:26:54,190 Some of the cauliflower, my pioppinis. 503 00:26:57,497 --> 00:26:58,567 (T.J. whistles) 504 00:26:58,567 --> 00:27:01,317 (pleasant music) 505 00:27:06,363 --> 00:27:08,120 And, it wouldn't be complete 506 00:27:08,120 --> 00:27:12,653 with the spicy crowning glory, salsa. 507 00:27:14,030 --> 00:27:15,430 All these different vegetables 508 00:27:15,430 --> 00:27:17,650 come together as one. 509 00:27:17,650 --> 00:27:22,650 It's always a balance of sweet, salty, savory, acidic. 510 00:27:22,820 --> 00:27:24,963 Really can bring a dish together. 511 00:27:26,640 --> 00:27:29,780 Though salsa is a seemingly simple condiment, 512 00:27:29,780 --> 00:27:32,490 this mix of veggies, fruits, and spices 513 00:27:32,490 --> 00:27:34,530 actually dates back through the ages 514 00:27:34,530 --> 00:27:37,433 of the Incas, Aztecs, and Mayans. 515 00:27:38,782 --> 00:27:41,780 (dramatic music) 516 00:27:41,780 --> 00:27:45,580 Aztec lords combined tomatoes with chile, 517 00:27:45,580 --> 00:27:47,893 ground squash seeds, and legumes. 518 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:52,745 And the Spaniards first encountered salsa 519 00:27:52,745 --> 00:27:54,674 in the 15th Century. 520 00:27:54,674 --> 00:27:57,424 (dramatic music) 521 00:27:58,470 --> 00:28:02,600 First on the shopping list for our salsa, tomatoes. 522 00:28:02,600 --> 00:28:05,050 This is a Zapotec tomato. 523 00:28:05,050 --> 00:28:07,020 The first time I ever had this tomato was in Oaxaca 524 00:28:07,020 --> 00:28:08,730 and I thought that it was just a weird looking 525 00:28:08,730 --> 00:28:10,100 little funky tomato, 526 00:28:10,100 --> 00:28:13,025 but just like we have heirloom tomatoes back home, 527 00:28:13,025 --> 00:28:15,343 this is basically what that is here. 528 00:28:17,080 --> 00:28:19,020 This species of the fruit family 529 00:28:19,020 --> 00:28:21,713 originated here, in Central America. 530 00:28:22,670 --> 00:28:25,803 Tomatoes were first exported in the 1500s. 531 00:28:26,673 --> 00:28:29,240 These colorful fruits were introduced 532 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:32,723 across the continent of Europe, and notably Italy. 533 00:28:34,130 --> 00:28:38,730 It's hard to imagine Italian food without tomatoes, 534 00:28:38,730 --> 00:28:41,800 but they didn't become a staple of the cuisine 535 00:28:41,800 --> 00:28:44,420 until around 1880, with the invention 536 00:28:44,420 --> 00:28:46,603 of the margherita pizza in Naples. 537 00:28:48,310 --> 00:28:51,123 This heirloom tomato will be the base. 538 00:28:51,990 --> 00:28:55,790 The next ingredient for our salsa, onions. 539 00:28:55,790 --> 00:28:57,560 These are knob onions. 540 00:28:57,560 --> 00:28:59,070 In the states we call 'em spring onions, 541 00:28:59,070 --> 00:29:01,000 but basically it's an onion 542 00:29:01,000 --> 00:29:03,710 before it develops its harder skin on the outside, 543 00:29:03,710 --> 00:29:06,810 so it's much sweeter and has a lighter flavor I guess, 544 00:29:06,810 --> 00:29:08,610 and they're really good to cook on the grill 545 00:29:08,610 --> 00:29:10,190 and serve on the side of some tacos, 546 00:29:10,190 --> 00:29:12,050 or I like to just kind of much them 547 00:29:12,050 --> 00:29:13,070 on their own once they're grilled. 548 00:29:13,070 --> 00:29:14,350 They're really awesome. 549 00:29:14,350 --> 00:29:16,320 (pleasant music) 550 00:29:16,320 --> 00:29:18,440 Onions are rich in vitamin C, 551 00:29:18,440 --> 00:29:21,010 mineral salts, and antioxidants. 552 00:29:21,010 --> 00:29:23,040 Their beneficial effects were understood 553 00:29:23,040 --> 00:29:26,270 as early as the building of the Pyramids. 554 00:29:26,270 --> 00:29:28,640 Egyptian mummies were even accompanied 555 00:29:28,640 --> 00:29:31,710 into the afterlife with stocks of onions 556 00:29:31,710 --> 00:29:32,993 wrapped in bandages. 557 00:29:34,721 --> 00:29:36,900 (Spanish guitar music) 558 00:29:36,900 --> 00:29:38,860 Most of the work is done, 559 00:29:38,860 --> 00:29:40,730 but a good Oaxacan salsa needs 560 00:29:40,730 --> 00:29:44,800 one last very important thing. 561 00:29:44,800 --> 00:29:45,633 A kick. 562 00:29:47,490 --> 00:29:48,450 This stand is pretty cool. 563 00:29:48,450 --> 00:29:50,320 It's a lot of different herbs and spices 564 00:29:50,320 --> 00:29:52,880 and a lot that you would see in traditional Oaxacan food. 565 00:29:52,880 --> 00:29:55,600 Some dry oregano and some cumin 566 00:29:55,600 --> 00:29:57,363 and allspice is also. 567 00:29:58,508 --> 00:29:59,370 A stall like this is really cool 568 00:29:59,370 --> 00:30:01,380 'cause you can really smell all the spices and stuff, 569 00:30:01,380 --> 00:30:03,250 and I don't know kind of takes you back in time 570 00:30:03,250 --> 00:30:04,220 if you want to think about 571 00:30:04,220 --> 00:30:06,250 a spice trader or something like that. 572 00:30:06,250 --> 00:30:09,120 Piles of cool ingredients, it's awesome. 573 00:30:09,120 --> 00:30:12,370 (Spanish guitar music) 574 00:30:14,780 --> 00:30:16,480 Kind of making a freestyle salsa today, 575 00:30:16,480 --> 00:30:18,040 and just taking some ingredients I like 576 00:30:18,040 --> 00:30:19,343 and mixing 'em together. 577 00:30:20,460 --> 00:30:22,020 One of the things I really enjoy coming down here 578 00:30:22,020 --> 00:30:24,600 is like how these tomatoes are always super sweet 579 00:30:24,600 --> 00:30:27,320 and ripe and super amazing. 580 00:30:27,320 --> 00:30:28,440 And I think it's one of the things 581 00:30:28,440 --> 00:30:31,290 that makes all the salsas and things here really special. 582 00:30:32,859 --> 00:30:33,730 I just want a little bit more char on 'em 583 00:30:33,730 --> 00:30:36,690 and then also as you see how they're bubbling here, 584 00:30:36,690 --> 00:30:38,040 and kind of shrinking up, 585 00:30:38,040 --> 00:30:40,360 what's happening is the water is cooking out 586 00:30:40,360 --> 00:30:42,310 and that's intensifying the flavors. 587 00:30:42,310 --> 00:30:44,580 Almost like a sun dried tomato would be. 588 00:30:44,580 --> 00:30:47,000 And I'm basically gonna mash up the tomatoes 589 00:30:47,000 --> 00:30:49,260 with a little bit of this chili paste 590 00:30:49,260 --> 00:30:51,590 which is made from Oaxacan pasilla chile 591 00:30:51,590 --> 00:30:54,670 which is a nice smoky chile kind of like a chipotle. 592 00:30:54,670 --> 00:30:56,180 So it's gonna add a little bit of acid 593 00:30:56,180 --> 00:30:57,420 from the tomatillo and some 594 00:30:57,420 --> 00:30:59,120 smokiness and heat from the chile. 595 00:31:00,234 --> 00:31:01,584 I think this might be done. 596 00:31:03,774 --> 00:31:04,607 Yeah I'm just gonna add a little salt to this 597 00:31:04,607 --> 00:31:07,014 and that's kind of perfect. 598 00:31:07,014 --> 00:31:10,181 (gentle guitar music) 599 00:31:12,360 --> 00:31:14,500 In every little bite, 600 00:31:14,500 --> 00:31:17,223 T.J. tells a great, big story. 601 00:31:18,960 --> 00:31:21,293 It took 12,000 years, 602 00:31:22,930 --> 00:31:25,564 but our meal is finally complete. 603 00:31:25,564 --> 00:31:28,314 (dramatic music) 604 00:31:29,820 --> 00:31:31,160 Okay. 605 00:31:31,160 --> 00:31:32,530 Let's eat. 606 00:31:32,530 --> 00:31:34,980 Each taco represents the story 607 00:31:34,980 --> 00:31:38,490 of agricultural selection, invention, 608 00:31:38,490 --> 00:31:41,363 experimentation, and hard work. 609 00:31:44,517 --> 00:31:47,146 (speaks foreign language) 610 00:31:47,146 --> 00:31:49,896 (dramatic music) 611 00:31:56,170 --> 00:31:58,580 From antiquity to modern day, 612 00:31:58,580 --> 00:32:01,700 humans have bent the environment to our will, 613 00:32:01,700 --> 00:32:04,340 and overseen the evolution and domestication 614 00:32:04,340 --> 00:32:05,863 of plants and animals. 615 00:32:07,200 --> 00:32:10,240 It was the ingredients provided by agriculture 616 00:32:10,240 --> 00:32:12,993 that inspired appreciation of flavors. 617 00:32:15,060 --> 00:32:18,310 But what good was producing a surplus of food 618 00:32:18,310 --> 00:32:20,793 if it couldn't all be consumed or traded? 619 00:32:22,030 --> 00:32:25,343 We needed to preserve, or die. 620 00:32:26,530 --> 00:32:30,253 And agrarian life taught us another valuable lesson, 621 00:32:30,253 --> 00:32:34,773 the alchemy of fermentation and food preservation. 622 00:32:35,720 --> 00:32:38,780 Methods that fueled an age of exploration 623 00:32:38,780 --> 00:32:41,638 that would change the world forever. 624 00:32:41,638 --> 00:32:44,388 (dramatic music) 625 00:32:49,966 --> 00:32:52,716 (pleasant music)