Zythum: Difference between revisions
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==Recipe== |
==Recipe== |
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The principal ingredient was malted grain, either [[emmer]] wheat or [[barley]] or a mixture of the two. Yeast was added by lightly baking bread and using crumbled bread to start the fermentation.<ref>Delwen Samuel, "[http://ancientgrains.org/samuel2000aemt.pdf Brewing and baking]" in P. T. Nicholson, I. Shaw, |
The principal ingredient was malted grain, either [[emmer]] wheat or [[barley]] or a mixture of the two. Yeast was added by lightly baking bread and using crumbled bread to start the fermentation.<ref>Delwen Samuel, "[http://ancientgrains.org/samuel2000aemt.pdf Brewing and baking]" in P. T. Nicholson, I. Shaw, eds, ''Ancient Egyptian materials and technology'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000) pp. 537-576</ref> |
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A very different recipe is mentioned in the third [[pesahim|tractate]] of the [[Talmud#Talmud Bavli (Babylonian Talmud)|Babylonian Talmud]] (42b).<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Talmud: A Selection|editor=Norman Solomon|publisher=Penguin|year=2009|pages=148, 150|chapter=Third Tractate Pesahim (The Passover)|isbn=978-0-14-144178-8}}</ref> According to [[Rav Yosef b. Hiyya]], it contains {{frac|1|3}} barley, {{frac|1|3}} [[safflower]] seed and {{frac|1|3}} salt. [[Rav Papa]] substituted wheat for barley. The ingredients were steeped, roasted and ground. |
A very different recipe is mentioned in the third [[pesahim|tractate]] of the [[Talmud#Talmud Bavli (Babylonian Talmud)|Babylonian Talmud]] (42b).<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Talmud: A Selection|editor=Norman Solomon|publisher=Penguin|year=2009|pages=148, 150|chapter=Third Tractate Pesahim (The Passover)|isbn=978-0-14-144178-8}}</ref> According to [[Rav Yosef b. Hiyya]], it contains {{frac|1|3}} barley, {{frac|1|3}} [[safflower]] seed and {{frac|1|3}} salt. [[Rav Papa]] substituted wheat for barley. The ingredients were steeped, roasted and ground. |
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Revision as of 18:20, 28 December 2020
Zythum (from Latin, based on Template:Lang-grc-gre, zŷthos), or sisni (from Hebrew)[citation needed] was a malt beer made in ancient Egypt.
Name
The name is Greek, meaning "ferment". The Latin name is a transcription of the Greek. The Egyptian name for beer was hqt.[1]
Recipe
The principal ingredient was malted grain, either emmer wheat or barley or a mixture of the two. Yeast was added by lightly baking bread and using crumbled bread to start the fermentation.[2]
A very different recipe is mentioned in the third tractate of the Babylonian Talmud (42b).[3] According to Rav Yosef b. Hiyya, it contains 1⁄3 barley, 1⁄3 safflower seed and 1⁄3 salt. Rav Papa substituted wheat for barley. The ingredients were steeped, roasted and ground.
Medicinal properties
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Apart from recreational drinking, zythum was used as an ancient Egyptian medicine. It was said to work as both a laxative and antidiarrhoeal. Its use was thought dangerous for sick people and pregnant women.
Legacy
Among Orthodox Jews, it is forbidden during Passover because it contains barley, making it chametz, although the punishment of kareth is not applicable to its consumption.
References
- ^ "Beer in Ancient Egypt" at Ancient Egypt Online
- ^ Delwen Samuel, "Brewing and baking" in P. T. Nicholson, I. Shaw, eds, Ancient Egyptian materials and technology (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000) pp. 537-576
- ^ Norman Solomon, ed. (2009). "Third Tractate Pesahim (The Passover)". The Talmud: A Selection. Penguin. pp. 148, 150. ISBN 978-0-14-144178-8.
External links
- Zythos, Hellenica
