The Impact of Cooking on Human Evolution

Humans didn't just evolve bigger brains and walk upright overnight. The real game changer

was cooking food. Two million years ago our ancestors discovered fire and started cooking

meat and plants. This single breakthrough gave us access to way more calories and nutrients.

Our guts could shrink because cooked food was easier to digest. That extra energy went straight to

growing massive brains. Cooking literally rewired our biology. We spent less time

chewing and more time thinking, talking, and creating tools. Fire brought us

together around campsites where we shared stories and built complex societies.

Without cooking we'd still be spending half our day just trying to eat enough raw food to survive.