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.

[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.

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

[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.