"At the Lajia archaeological site in Qinghai Province, China, buried beneath 10 feet of sediment deposited by an ancient earthquake, archaeologists discovered a startlingly well-preserved bowl of noodles. An overturned bowl sealed the thin, yellow noodles into a chamber capable of safeguarding them for 4,000 years. In so doing, the groundwork was set for this bowl to challenge the narrative of where noodles were first developed and how they were made."
"The thin and delicate noodles measured around 20 inches in length, seemingly made with the same hand-pulled technique still used for some Chinese noodles. They were also noted to be quite uniform, suggesting evidence of a well-honed technique. Perhaps the most significant difference between these noodles and their modern counterparts is that they were made with millet, a grain indigenous to the region that has been cultivated in the area for at least 7,000 years."
Archaeologists excavated a remarkably preserved bowl of thin, yellow noodles at the Lajia site in Qinghai Province, China, sealed beneath 10 feet of earthquake-deposited sediment. The overturned bowl protected the noodles for approximately 4,000 years. The noodles measured around 20 inches and display uniformity and a hand-pulled appearance consistent with techniques still used for some Chinese noodles. The noodles were made from millet, a regionally indigenous grain cultivated there for at least 7,000 years, indicating early noodle production using grains other than wheat and complicating simple origin stories for pasta-like foods.
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