We are men of maize!. As I have said before, it’s impossible to think the Guatemalan and Mesoamerican diets without maize. From the Popul Vuh (Popol Wuj in modern spelling), the Mayan equivalent of the Bible, which states that humans were literally created from maize, to Miguel Ángel Asturias‘ novel Hombres de maíz (Men of … Read more
Within two weeks the harvest time will commence around Antigua Guatemala for corn. Normally, maize is harvested from the end of October through December depending on the milpa fields. Beans are harvested from November through December in most places in Guatemala. Who knows how much will be harvested this year since we experienced a severe … Read more
Men of Maize Revisited! “There was consensus and it was decided to bring the purple maize, the yellow maize, the red maize and the white maize and from these our bones were made, our blood, our meat.” —Popol Vuh «Hubo consenso y se decidió que viniera el maíz morado, el maíz amarillo, el maíz rojo … Read more
These are some of the most often used ingredients in the Guatemalan kitchen. This photo was taken at La Fonda de la Calle Real at a booth that the restaurant put out to showcase their flavors and the ingredients they use in their kitchen. You can take this photo to your local Latin market and … Read more
Very often I see women on their way to the maize mill to turn nixtamalized maized into masa dough to make tortillas. As I have mentioned before, in Guatemala freshly baked/cooked tortillas are sold three times a day (los tres tiempos). Yet, there are many people who still like to prepared their own tortillas at … Read more
This has to be one of the most frequent vistas in rural Guatemala. A woman or girl carrying a load of cooked maize on her way to the mill to turn the maize into masa. As I have mentioned before, in Guatemala freshly baked/cooked tortillas are sold three times a day (los tres tiempos). Yet, … Read more
As I said before, it is impossible to think of the Guatemalan, Mexican and Mesoamerican diet without maize. From the Popul Vuh (Popol Wuj in modern spelling), the Mayan equivalent of the Bible, which states that humans were literally created from maize, to Miguel Ángel Asturias‘ novel Hombres de maíz (Men of Maize) which is … Read more
The Guatemalan way of life is rapidly disappearing right in front of our eyes. Today’s entry is such a case, as the image of women taking their maize to mill to make masa (maize dough) is fading away. Recently, I read an article in Prensa Libre which stated that people are abandoning the use of ‘real’ maize to make masa in favor of corn flour because the price difference was now so tiny that it made economic sense to abandon the use of maize.