How Bouillon Cubes Became an International Pantry Staple

To understand how bouillon achieved such international popularity, you have to consider the central role that broths and stocks have played in human history. Using water to stretch ingredients into a full, and filling, nutritious meal is a survival-based innovation that has come to define culinary traditions around the world. It was out of this ubiquity that the bouillon cube was born.

Around the world, different brands of bouillon may reign supreme, and their products may instead be labeled "stock cubes" or "broth cubes," but oftentimes the MSG-heavy concentrate is no less a pantry staple. Thanks to its relatively low cost, ease and speed of use, and intense flavor, bouillon is a popular ingredient in kitchens on virtually every continent, where powders and cubes are used to season soups and stews, and in some cases, are even sprinkled directly over cooked plates of food.

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