A sealed bowl unearthed at the Lajia archaeological site in China has revealed the well-preserved remains of thin, yellow noodles dated at around 4,000 years old. This discovery may finally settle the long-standing argument about whether noodles were invented in China or in Italy.
The bowl was found under ten feet (three meters) of sediment. The contents, long, thin, yellow noodles, were easily recognizable. Later analysis showed that they were made of two types of millet which had been ground into flour. Millet is indigenous to China and has been cultivated there for more than 7,000 years. While wheat-based noodles are the most common type found in the world today, millet noodles are still a staple food in poorer areas in China.
The combination of two varieties of millet, broomcorn and foxtail, is interesting in itself. Foxtail millet alone would not lend itself to being pulled and stretched into thin noodles because it is not sticky enough. When combined with broomcorn millet, though, the dough becomes sticky enough to be handled and pulled into shape. This suggests a sophisticated level of knowledge in creating and handling millet dough.
The earliest recorded evidence of noodles is a mention in a book written sometime between A.D. 25 and 220. This time frame is consistent with the appearance of noodles in other parts of the world, although those noodles were usually made of wheat rather than millet.
Historians and other experts have long argued about whether modern noodles were invented by the Chinese, the Italians, or by Arabs. Some stories credit Italian explorer Marco Polo with introducing noodles into Europe.
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