Mesoamerican cuisine

Mesoamerican cuisine – (covering Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, northern Costa Rica and Mexico)^[1] has four main staples: maize (many varieties based on what climate it is grown in),^[2] beans,^[3] squash and chili.^[4] Other plant-based foods used include: amaranth, avocado,^[5] cassava, cherimoya, chia, chocolate,^[6] guava,^[7] nanche, pineapple, sapodilla,^[8] sweet potatoes, yucca and zapote.^[9]

Historically, various methods and techniques were employed to store, prepare and preserve the foods, most of which remain in use today.^[10] Hernán Cortés introduced rice and wheat to Mesoamerica, prior to which time milpa (known as the cornfield)^[5] was one of the main sources of sustenance.^[11]

Some traditional foods featured in the cuisine include: Atole (a drink made using masa)^[12] and Chocolate Atole (with the addition of chocolate) also known as champurrado.^[13] Two classic maize dishes are: boiling maize in water and lime, mixing with chili peppers and eating as gruel; dough preparation for flat cakes, tamales and tortillas.^[14] Edible foam is another popular food item, sometimes even regarded as sacred.^[15]

While squashes were cooked for food, dried gourds were repurposed for storage^[16][17] or used during battles with embers and chilies, wrapped in leaves and used as chemical warfare.^{[failed verification]}

History

Common cocoa seed that would be used to make hot chocolate

• 7200 BC: use of chilies
• 6,700 BC: harvesting and teosinte planting
• 4000 BC: use of squash
• 2000 BC: cultivation began
• 1500 BC: chocolate with the Olmec civilization in Mesoamerica.^[18]

Animals

The animals used in Mesoamerican cuisine were mainly dogs, turkeys, deer and the Muscovy duck.^[19]

Chocolate

The Mesoamericans began making fermented drinks using chocolate in 450 BC using the cocoa tree.^[20] Once sugar was used to sweeten it rather than spices, it gained popularity^[21] and was used in feasts. Toasted cacao beans were ground (sometimes with parched corn) and then the powder was mixed with water. This was beaten with a wooden whisk until foamy. Vanilla orchid pods or honey were used as flavor enhancers.^[22] Chocolate was also seen as an energy drink and a libido increaser as recorded by Moctezuma II who drank 50 cups a day from a golden goblet.^[23]

See also

• List of Mexican dishes
• Indigenous cuisine of the Americas