Mesoamerican cuisine

Mesoamerican cuisine – has four main staples: maize, beans, squash and chili. Other plant-based foods used include amaranth, avocado, cassava, cherimoya, chia, chocolate, guava, nanche, pineapple, sapodilla, sweet potatoes, yucca and zapote.
Historically, various methods and techniques were employed to store, prepare and preserve the foods, most of which remain in use today. Hernán Cortés introduced rice and wheat to Mesoamerica, prior to which time milpa was one of the main sources of sustenance.
Some traditional foods featured in the cuisine include atole and chocolate atole, also known as champurrado. Two classic maize preparations are boiling maize in water and lime, mixing with chili peppers and eating as gruel, and dough preparation for flat cakes, tamales and tortillas. Edible foam is another popular food item, sometimes even regarded as sacred.
While squashes were cooked for food, dried gourds were repurposed for storage or used during battles with embers and chilies, wrapped in leaves and used as chemical warfare.

History

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.

Animals

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

Chocolate

The Mesoamericans began making fermented drinks using chocolate in 450 BC using the cocoa tree. Once sugar was used to sweeten it rather than spices, it gained popularity and was used in feasts. Toasted cacao beans were ground 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. 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.