Gladiator Puls

Simple garlic and onion flavored porridge made with fava beans and barley

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City/Region: Rome

Time Period: 1st Century | 2nd Century

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Gladiators ate a mostly vegetarian diet of porridge, as mentioned by the physician Galen, the poet Juvenal, and Pliny the Elder. This recipe is reconstructed from their writings and contemporary recipes for fancier porridges from Apicius and Cato the Elder.

Often, the gladiators ate the same thing day after day, and while this puls turned out pretty tasty, it’s really more of a side dish and I wouldn’t want it every day. The garlic is the main flavor, along with a bit of sweetness from the onion. If you like garlic like I do, you may want to add more than is written.

“There is also much use made of fava beans…our gladiators eat a great deal of this food every day, making the condition of their body fleshy - not compact, dense flesh like pork, but flesh that is somehow more flabby.”

— Galen, 2nd century

“Barley is among the oldest human foods…and the name given to gladiators, who used to be called hordearii, barley-men.”

— Pliny the Elder, 1st century

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Ingredients:

• 1 cup (150 g) dried fava beans
• 1 cup (170 g) barley, preferably hulled barley, but pearl will work
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 quart (1 L) water
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

1. Soak the barley and fava beans in cool water overnight.
2. After they’ve soaked, remove the peels from the fava beans (or buy pre-peeled beans).
3. In a large pot, stir together the olive oil and onions so that the onions are coated in the oil. Set it over medium heat and cook for 5 minutes or until the onions are translucent.
4. Add the water to the pot and bring it to a boil. Be careful because the water and oil might spatter.
5. When the water is boiling, add the barley. Cover and cook for 30 minutes. If you're using pearl barley, cook it for 15 minutes.
6. Stir in the fava beans, garlic, vinegar, and salt. Simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes, or until it becomes a thick porridge.
7. When it’s the consistency you want, serve it forth.

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