Part 4/9:
Surprisingly, recent archaeological evidence suggests that gladiators maintained a largely vegetarian diet, consisting mainly of a porridge known as puls, made from barley and beans. Historical texts from figures like Galen and Pliny the Elder provide insight into the nutritional regimen of these warriors. Galen detailed the significant role of fava beans in the gladiator diet, describing the resulting "flabby" body type that could prove beneficial when enduring stab wounds.
These accounts indicate that puls was a staple meal, prepared simply through the cooking of fava beans and barley. In the absence of explicit gladiatorial recipes, historical cooks have reconstructed variations based on what was available at the time.