Ancient Inca Potato Treats Unearthed in Peru—Could This Be the World’s First Freeze-Dried Snack?
This is concrete evidence that the Inca Empire had a productive food network that prioritized preservation and storage. Potatoes especially were very valuable to the Inca, as they are native to the Andes and delivered an assortment of important nutrients.
Wikimedia CommonsA 17th-century illustration of Inca farmers at work.
In the study, Valdez emphasized that the freeze-dried potatoes could be safely eaten even after long periods of time in storage inside the empire’s warehouses. According to Valdez, chuño production was a “savvy strategy” that prevented “the loss of important food” and created “food reserves that were used to support imperial projects.”
Valdez also told Live Science that the Inca used the same freeze-drying technique to preserve meat, creating “charki,” which is where the English work “jerky” comes from.
Given that this is only the second time archaeologists have found concrete evidence of chuño at an Inca site, the team is excited about the doors that this discovery could open for future research. Not many Inca sites along the coast of Peru have been systematically investigated, meaning that there could be many other preserved foods out there, just waiting to be found.
As Valdez said, “We still have so much to learn from the people of the past.”
After reading about the 500-year-old Inca potatoes found in Peru, discover who built Machu Picchu. Then, learn about the Inca child sacrifices left on top of a volcano.
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