Products and eating habits
The arrival of the Spanish in Mesoamerica in the 16th century marked the beginning of a new era for Europe in many respects, and of course gastronomy was no exception to this sudden upheaval. This discovery gave Europeans access to a whole new range of hitherto unknown ingredients, including numerous species of fruit, vegetables and spices domesticated by the region's indigenous populations, such as corn, tomatoes, avocados, chocolate, vanilla and chillies.
Corn has been cultivated in the region for thousands of years, and is used in many dishes: tortillas, tamales, soups, desserts and more. It traditionally undergoes an ancient process called nixtamalization, which consists of cooking the kernels in an alkaline solution, generally a mixture of water and lime, intended to weaken the outer shell of the corn kernels, making them more digestible and releasing their vitamins and nutrients. A wide variety of beans have been cultivated in Central America for thousands of years too.
Although tomatoes in their wild form originated in the Andes, they were actually domesticated by the peoples of Central America through trade. In Guatemala, it is often eaten with tomatillo or miltomate, a closely related plant whose small, green, tangy fruits are used to prepare sauces. The country is also a center of diversity for chillies, which come in a multitude of varieties such as chile guaque (fairly large, crumpled, not very hot and eaten dry), chile de árbol (close to the Cayenne pepper and therefore very hot) or chile cobanero (a very old variety producing tiny, round, very hot chillies).
The pride Guatemalans take in their traditional cuisine prompted the government in 2007 to declare four emblematic dishes to be part of the nation's intangible cultural heritage. Jocón (chicken with a sauce combining tomatillo, coriander, onion, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds), pepián (a chicken stew with a recado: a chili, tomatillo, tomato and cinnamon sauce), kaq'ik (turkey in a tomatillo, chili, coriander, mint and mixed spice sauce) and finally plátanos en mole (a sweet and sour dish with bananas topped with a bitter chocolate, sesame, cinnamon and chili sauce). These dishes, a fusion of Spanish and indigenous know-how, were served in the homes of wealthy families and are still served on important occasions.
The traditional breakfast is a hearty meal that includes beans, eggs (scrambled or fried), a tortilla, plantains and a hot drink. Lunch is the main meal, and many restaurants offer a menu consisting of soup, roast chicken, rice and tortillas. It's often economical and tasty. Dinner usually consists of a light soup, stew, beans and tortillas.
Classics of Guatemalan cuisine
The tamales are a staple of Guatemalan cuisine, and come in many different forms. They are a kind of dumpling made from corn dough (sometimes potato or rice), often filled with meat and steamed. They are generally wrapped in green leaves from the maxan palm tree, with the exception of the chuchitossimilar to Mexican tamales, which are wrapped in corn leaves. Among the most common variations are the tamales coloradoswith tomato and roucou (a blood-red spice with a nutmeg-like aftertaste), the tamales de elote made with fresh corn purée, the tamales negros made with blue or black corn, and paches where the corn is replaced by potatoes. The chipilín tamalitos and tamalitos de loroco are small tamales flavored with chipilin leaves and loroco flowers respectively. Finally chepitos or frijol tamales are filled with a more or less fine black bean purée.
On the street-food and snack side, there's of course the famous guacamole, which traditionally contains only avocado, green onion, coriander and chilli pepper. The garnachas are small corn tortillas garnished with frijoles refritos (black bean purée), cheese, shredded cabbage and chopped onions. The shuco is THE Guatemalan hot dog. It's filled with guacamole, tomato sauce, mustard, hot sauce, mayonnaise and a sausage or chorizo to cook. Found throughout Latin America, the chicharrónes are pieces of rind and bacon fried to perfection, sometimes combined with boiled manioc (yuca con chicharrón). The empanadas de ayote are turnovers filled with pumpkin purée and minced meat for All Saints' Day.
In fact, it's during All Saints' Day that the fiambre. Traditionally, the favorite dishes of the deceased were prepared for the Day of the Dead and brought to the family. Gradually, as the dishes blended together, the result was the fiambre, a kind of salad similar to an English plate, with sausages and cold cuts, shrimps, hard-boiled eggs, corn, various vegetables, cheese, etc. Soup is also a popular starter. Soups are also popular starters, such as the caldo de gallina (chicken) or de res (beef).
Meat - beef, pork, chicken - is relatively common in Guatemala, and grilled meat (carne asada) and fried eggs are most often served with chirmola sauce made with fresh tomatoes, onions, coriander and a hint of chili pepper. The hilachas is a shredded beef stew simmered with tomato, baby vegetables and hot peppers, while theestofado de carne is a classic beef or pork stew with potatoes and carrots. Finally, the revolcado is a stew of pork offal (heart, liver, etc.) with tomato and tomatillos, as well as various spices. The güicoyitos rellenos are small, round zucchinis stuffed with minced meat. A recipe straight out of the Mayan culinary tradition, the subanik is a very spicy meat dish (pork, chicken and/or beef) richly seasoned with several varieties of chillies and stewed for a long time in banana leaves.
Better known by its Salvadorian name of " gallo en chicha", the gallo en perro is a chicken stew with chicha (fermented pineapple drink), tomatoes, peppers, onions and various spices. The term " pollo guisado" could be translated as "chicken stew", and throughout the country represents a multitude of recipes for poultry in sauce, usually containing tomato, as well as a wide variety of vegetables, herbs and spices, and sometimes olives. The pollo encebollado is a chicken dish with caramelized onions.
On the Caribbean coast, Garífuna (Creole) cuisine is reminiscent of the West Indies. The delicious local specialty is tapadoa kind of whole fish and shellfish soup with coconut milk, fresh coriander and spices reminiscent of colombo. It's topped, of course, with slices of fried plantain. The classic accompaniments are black beans and rice, sometimes mixed together (arroz con frijoles). Rice is very often prepared with chicken (arroz con pollo), a widespread Latin American dish. Black beans are either served in their own juices, or, as is the case at breakfast, in a fine purée with small onions (frijoles volteados).
Desserts and drinks
Guatemalan desserts and other sweet snacks oscillate between Western specialties and typically Mesoamerican products. These include tamales negros with chocolate, raisins, prunes and almonds, or tortitas de yucasmall manioc pancakes. Not forgetting the astonishing chancletas de güisquila dessert based on chayote (a type of green squash with a delicate flavour), topped with an egg cream flavoured with cinnamon and vanilla and decorated with dried fruit. The garbanzos en dulce are chickpeas in a thick syrup
The classic arroz con leche is the Iberian version of rice pudding, while repollitos are small cabbages, often filled with dulce de leche (milk caramel). There are also buñuelos (round fritters) and torrejas (French toast, often with cinnamon). The rellenitos de plátano are banana fritters filled with sweet bean purée and sprinkled with sugar. You may also be tempted by the simplistic chocobananoa banana coated in chocolate then placed in the freezer before being eaten like an ice cream. The recipe is also available in chocopiña (pineapple), chocofresa (strawberry), etc., with no shortage of tropical fruits on the shelves (mangoes, papayas, etc.).
Fruit juices are, of course, common, as is homemade lemonade with lime (limonada con soda) and licuadossmoothies combining fruit, milk and crushed ice. As for hot beverages, let yourself be tempted by theatol de elotea hot, creamy drink made with sweet corn and milk, flavoured with cinnamon. But the star of the show is coffee, grown for centuries in Guatemala. It is recognized as one of the best in the world. Its strength and richness, with a hint of acidity, has made it a favorite among aficionados.
As for alcohol, there are several varieties of local beer, including the famous Gallo, the country's national beer brewed since 1896, as well as the equally popular Dorada and Victoria. There are also several brandies made from sugar cane, such as guarowhich is naturally sweeter and milder than rum, at around 30°, although some artisanal products are much stronger. And don't miss the famous Zacapa amber rum, whose reputation has spread far and wide. Finally, the quetzalteca is a cane brandy ranging from 30° to 60°, available plain or flavored with hibiscus or tamarind.
