10 TLAXCALTEC DISHES WITH PRE-HISPANIC HERITAGE

Get to know Tlaxcala through its gastronomy

Tlaxcala, in addition to being known for being one of the smallest states in Mexico, is also popular for its delicious pre-Hispanic cuisine. Its name comes from the Nahuatl word “tlaxcalli”, which means “corn tortilla”.

For this reason, in this post we will talk about the 10 Tlaxcaltec dishes that incorporate pre-Hispanic heritage into their food.

1. Tlacoyos

This dish is very well known by Mexicans. It consists of an oval corn tortilla thicker than normal, which can sometimes be stuffed with beans, alverjón or beans, among other ingredients. On top they can take several components such as some stew, sauce, and cheese. Usually consumed in the mornings as breakfast.

2. Escamoles

This dish considered a delicacy by the Aztecs consists of ant eggs, commonly known as escamoles, which have a whitish tone, while their texture is a little crunchy, especially if fried with butter. They are usually accompanied by tortillas and guacamole, but they can also come alone. The price of this dish is high because it has a relatively short harvest season between the months of March and April.

3. Maguey worms

It is a characteristic of the animal, since it is the same as the name, it is found in certain species of magueyes and can be used as food, since you put a high content in proteins and natural fats. It is for this reason that they are commonly sold roasted with tacos in a corn tortilla, or they can come alone as a snack. Another of their peculiar uses is to put them at the bottom of a bottle of mezcal or as an accompaniment to be able to taste this traditional Mexican drink.

4. Chileatole

This dish has been known since pre-Hispanic times, where the drink known as “atole” is made with toasted cacao, dough, and sometimes sweetened with honey. Over time, this recipe has been modified and is currently prepared with salted corn atole, chili is added, and pieces of corn to accompany it.

In some other states they put other ingredients like pork to eat as a stew, or even as a salty dessert, which can have lemon, cheese and mayonnaise.

5. Black mole of huitlacoche

This type of mole is prepared with a wide variety of chiles, which are ground with pork broth and a little dough to achieve a thick consistency. In addition, huitlacoche is added to give the stew its characteristic black appearance.

The huitlacoche is a species of edible mushroom, which develops in corn due to humidity. That is why it usually occurs between the months of June and November, when the rains predominate.

6. Tatemado tamale

This type of tamale does not contain too much, but it does contain ingredients such as quelites, cottage cheese, nopales, and mushrooms, which are played to be able to place them in a corn leaf where the ingredients are wrapped and placed directly in the comal to be able to touch the sheet for both.

7. Pulque

This drink is the province of agave or maguey. It takes around 12 years for the plant to reach its maturity and thus be able to start producing aguamiel, which is the sap of the maguey and the main base of the pulque. Then, this sap is fermented to be able to achieve a degree of alcohol, which depends on the time it is fermented. The result is usually between 2% and 8% alcohol.

The texture of this drink is viscous and on some occasions they can make the famous cured polque, where a little of this is combined with natural fruit and other ingredients such as guava, pitaya, coffee, marzipan, among others.

8. Tlaxcales

This delicious dessert in the shape of a triangle is made with masa de maíz, piloncillo, and cinnamon. Have a soft texture that when it touches your mouth, the bread falls apart, which means you can taste the ingredients you put inside.

9. Moaning

There are different presentations for the muéganos, but this time we will talk about the famous muéganos of Huamantla, Tlaxcala. These have a rectangular shape and are made of anise, wheat flour, pork lard, and are dipped in piloncillo syrup with cinnamon. Sometimes colored wafers are placed on them, which gives them a different appearance.

10. Chicken Tocatlan

This stew is made with chicken, green tomatoes, serrano peppers, and nopales, which are deposited in mixiote paper and steamed. This dish was born in a municipality of Tlaxcala called Tocatlán and has had certain modifications so as not to give more to the Magueyas. For example, the epidermis of the mixiote is not used, now it is better to use the paper mixiote that is obtained in supermarkets.

Despite the fact that Tlaxcala is a small state, it is full of history from our ancestors. That’s why we want to give just a taste of what you can find. Tell us, what would be your perfect combination of Tlaxcalteca food?