Kykeon (ancient barley drink)

Ancient Greek ritual barley drink

Origin: Ancient Greece

From the journey of Barley.

Kykeon (κυκεών, 'that which is stirred') is one of the most historically significant drinks in the ancient world. It appears in Homer's Iliad and Odyssey as a restorative drink given to warriors, and most crucially in accounts of the Eleusinian Mysteries, the most important religious rites of ancient Greece, held at Eleusis near Athens for over two thousand years. Initiates who had fasted for days as part of the ritual preparation broke their fast with a cup of kykeon: a mixture of ground barley (or barley flour), water, and mint. Some scholars, most notably classicist Carl Ruck and mycologist Gordon Wasson, have proposed that the kykeon of the Mysteries was infused with ergot-infected barley (from which LSD was first synthesised) or with psychoactive mushrooms, accounting for the mystical visions reported by initiates. The plain barley-and-mint version described by Homer is the safe, documented recipe presented here: deeply historical and genuinely refreshing.

Ingredients

Main

6 tbsp barley flour (or very finely ground pearl barley, lightly toasted)

Liquid

1 litre cold water

Herb

1 large handful fresh mint (pennyroyal was the original, use spearmint or peppermint as a substitute)

Optional

1 tbsp honey (optional, Homer's version does not include it, but it improves palatability)

Seasoning

0.25 tsp fine salt (a pinch, as in Homer's version)

Method

Toast the barley flour lightly in a dry pan over medium heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring, until it smells nutty and turns a pale gold. This is the 'roasted barley meal' (alphita) used in Homer.
Bring 500 ml of water to a boil. Add the mint sprigs, reduce heat, and steep for 5 minutes. Remove the mint. Allow to cool slightly.
Whisk the toasted barley flour into the warm mint water until smooth and lump-free. Add the remaining cold water, salt, and honey if using. Whisk vigorously: 'kykeon' means 'stirred mixture.'
Taste. The kykeon should be lightly minty, nutty, slightly savoury, and refreshing: neither a porridge nor a clear drink, but somewhere between: a liquid grain drink.
Serve immediately: the barley will settle if left standing. Stir again before drinking.

Notes

This is one of the oldest documented recipes in Western literature. Homer describes it in the Iliad (Book XI) with the ingredients listed almost exactly as above: 'barley meal, wine of Pramnos, grated goat's cheese and bronze-coloured honey.' The Eleusinian version omitted the wine and cheese. This recipe follows the simpler Eleusinian version. A genuinely extraordinary drink to make and to contemplate.

The Gastrographer

Name: Kykeon (ancient barley drink)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Ancient Greece
Ingredients: 6 tbsp barley flour (or very finely ground pearl barley, lightly toasted); 1 litre cold water; 1 large handful fresh mint (pennyroyal was the original, use spearmint or peppermint as a substitute); 1 tbsp honey (optional, Homer's version does not include it, but it improves palatability); 0.25 tsp fine salt (a pinch, as in Homer's version)

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control