Abstract
Nixtamalization, which means cooking maize in alkaline water, is the central technique for the culinary use of maize in Mexico and Central America. Without this procedure, relying on maize as the basic starch staple is inadequate because of nutriment deficiencies. Mexico has more than 50 principal racial types of maize, and these differ in grain qualities that can require the adjustment of the nixtamalization process. Properties such as hardness and grain composition influence nixtamalization because they are related to the absorption of water that occurs during cooking and steeping. Some maize preparations, like tortillas and tostadas, can also require the adjustment of nixtamalization to obtain a high-quality foodstuff. We studied how women in three regions of the state of Chiapas, which differ in the prevalent maize race available, prepare their nixtamal and whether they make changes according to the type of food they prepare. Interviews of 30 women follow the measure of relevant variables when the women prepared nixtamal. We found that nixtamalization is adjusted for different grain hardnesses and for environmental conditions. Variations were found in the cooking time of the nixtamal, in the amount of time the nixtamal was steeped, and in a special process of double boiling of the nixtamal performed by some women for tostadas. Women that specialize in production for the market have developed variations preferred by consumers. As practiced by women in Chiapas, nixtamalization is a flexible technique that is adjusted for maize type and for food preparations.
Highlights
Hundreds of dishes have been documented in Mexican cuisine for maize (Zea mays L., subsp. mays), including tortillas, gorditas, tostadas, tamales, atole, pozol and other maize-based preparations that may have favored its diversity as a crop [1,2,3]
The women of Ixtlahuaca and Tlaxiaco make tortillas for their own Palacios‐Pola et al Journal of Ethnic Foods (2022) 9:2 consumption and sale in public squares and markets. They cook hybrid and native varieties of maize, but they prefer the native grains by the shorter cooking time and better organoleptic characteristics of the tortillas [12, 13]
The discovery of nixtamalization was essential for developing a food culture around maize
Summary
Hundreds of dishes have been documented in Mexican cuisine for maize (Zea mays L., subsp. mays), including tortillas (the staple flat bread), gorditas (a thick flat bread), tostadas (toasted tortillas), tamales (a steamed preparation), atole (a hot thickened beverage), pozol (a cold beverage) and other maize-based preparations that may have favored its diversity as a crop [1,2,3].About 60 native races and hundreds of landraces of maize are grown in Mexico [4, 5]; these have importantNixtamalization and its variation at the household level and for specific preparations, have been scarcely studied ethnographically [11]. The women of Ixtlahuaca and Tlaxiaco (regions of the State of Mexico and Oaxaca, respectively) make tortillas for their own Palacios‐Pola et al Journal of Ethnic Foods (2022) 9:2 consumption and sale in public squares and markets. They cook hybrid and native varieties of maize, but they prefer the native grains by the shorter cooking time and better organoleptic characteristics of the tortillas [12, 13]. The discovery of nixtamalization was essential for developing a food culture around maize. Nixtamalization increases the calcium content and efficiency in the assimilation of essential amino acids, releases the available niacin and removes the kernel coating making the masa (dough) less fibrous and more elastic [15]
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