‘Surprisingly tasty’: putting Neanderthal cooking to the test

Evidence has been found of complex cooking by Neanderthals. Our writer finds out how their meals might have tasted

Pity the Neanderthal chef. With only rudimentary cooking implements - a hot rock, some scraps of animal skin, perhaps a favoured prodding stick, plus stones for pounding, cutting, scraping and grinding - their hands must have been a scarred mess, and the woodsmoke from the hearth must have played havoc with their eyes. However, according to research published this week, they did at least have access to a smorgasbord of ingredients.

Gone is the stereotype of Neanderthals tearing into raw tubers or gnawing on a leg of roasted animal meat. Microscopic analysis of ancient food scraps unearthed from a hearth in Shanidar Cave, in Iraq, has provided the first real indication of complex cooking - and thus of food culture - among Neanderthals.