Foods Discovered by Chance

With a history dating back to the 9th century, coffee is undoubtedly one of the best discoveries. Kaldi, the Ethiopian goatherd, discovered that one day his goats were very lively and active after eating red fruits from a bush. He then collected these red berries and tried them himself. When he felt more alive and active, he shared his discovery with the oracle. The rumor spread and people in the Arabian Peninsula started growing coffee. Coffee in the 16th century; Iran, Egypt, Syria and spread to Turkey. It was then transported to Europe by travelers in the 17th century. The coffee that reached Venice was first tried and approved by the Pope. What would we drink in the morning today if the shepherd had not observed his goats well?

The artificial sweetener was accidentally discovered in 1976 by researchers at Tate & Lyle sugar company and Queen Elizabeth College. British sugar company Tate & Lyle was researching to mix sugar with other chemicals. The research was conducted in collaboration with the Laboratory at Queen's College. Shashikant Phadnis, a foreign graduate student, invented Splenda, the artificial sweetener, after misreading the instructions. Rumors about the invention spread and everyone started to wonder about the product. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted American marketing approval in 1998. Immediately after this approval, Johnson & Johnson acquired the rights to develop sucralose in the United States and immediately launched the product.

Yoghurt, whose history goes back to 6000 BC, was discovered by Neolithic people in Central Asia. After the Neolithic people milked their animals, they stored the milk in containers made of animal skin. Enzymes inside the skin were activated in the warm environment and caused the milk to have a dense consistency. As the benefits of yogurt spread, it started to be preferred by everyone. It is known that Genghis Khan and his army consumed yogurt to protect themselves from stomach ailments during the campaigns.

Tea, which has its origins in China, is one of the drinks discovered accidentally. In 2737 B.C., Emperor Shen Nong was boiling water in the pot. A few leaves falling from a nearby tree into his pot changed the color and taste of the water. After drinking and enjoying this water, he started recommending it to everyone. It was considered a medicinal drink during the Shang Dynasty in the Yunnan region. Tea started to spread to other countries through the Silk Road. To break China's tea monopoly in the 17th century, the British East India Company began to produce today's black tea and introduce it to Europe, India and Britain. Today, tea has many varieties and it is still popular.

In 1905, eleven-year-old Frank Epperson forgot a stick and a glass of soda and water on the porch of his home. The kid who found the frozen glass with low temperature at night, called it "Eppsicles." In 1923, this product was started to be sold in amusement parks. Later, it was patented and its name was changed to popsicle. Unilever bought and developed the Popsicle brand in 1989 and produced its variations. It became popular among both children and adults.

Discovered by Chef George Crum in 1953, potato chips have a very good story. One of the customers told the chef, who works at a restaurant in New York, that their fries are too thick. To teach his client a lesson, he chopped the potato very finely, fried and salted it, and served it to the client. Customers liked it very much and it started to be sold constantly. In those years, African-Americans were prohibited from applying for patents. Because the chef is African-American, he could not get a patent and started to be packaged and sold all over the world.

Beer has a long history. It was accidentally discovered while baking bread in Mesopotamia in the 5th century BC. When the barley grains were forgotten in a damp room, they were fermented. It was then passed through different fermentation steps with wild yeast. However, it was not as clear as we drink today, but rather like a soup. The invention of the straw was thanks to beer. A pipette with holes on the tips were made so that no particles could get into the mouth while drinking the beer like a soup. Beer, which has undergone changes over the centuries, has taken its current form.

Discovered by Ruth Wakefield by coincidence in 1938, the reputation of the chocolate chip spread quickly. Baker Wakefield cut the flavored chocolates into pieces when he ran out of chocolate in his shop and added it to his dough. He was waiting for the pieces to melt and disperse in the dough. However, the pieces did not melt and turned out wonderfully and chocolate cookies came out. In 1997, the State of Massachusetts designated the chocolate chip cookie as the official government cookie.

At the 1904 World's Fair, when an ice cream maker ran out of glasses to put ice creams in, Ernest A Hamwi immediately played with the wafers in his hand and turned them into a cone. Everyone started to ask for these cones, which attracted a lot of attention at the fair. So the ice cream cone was invented. Before this invention, ice creams were sold in glass and paper cups.

During WWII, the wives of officers sat in a restaurant after shopping and ordered something to eat. But the cook was not at the restaurant. Chief Chef, Ignacio Anaya, didn't want to keep the customers waiting, so he went into the kitchen and started doing something. Originally inspired by a meal originated in Mexico, nachos was made and presented to customers. The food became very popular and other customers came and started asking for the same meal. To honor the inventor, October 21 has been declared as "International Nacho Day".