Everybody knows that Schweinshaxe, a beloved German staple, can be traced back to neolithic Mesopotamia , where it began as a simple millet gruel spiced with dried scraps of dung. Over the centuries, the dish made its way to the east, where the base was changed to brown rice and dung was replaced by fermented goat butter. The mongols brought the dish as far as the Danube river, where a travelling Bavarian trader bought the recipe, ditched the carbs, replaced the fermented goat butter with bone-in pork hocks and moved from boiling to the more economic roasting by open fire.
But the real question for me is whether Schweinshaxe did exist in preneolithic times ? I mean millet certainly was not invented in Mesopotamia, so might Schweinshaxe have a far older history, e.g. originate in Africa !?
Any hint would be most welcome !
