I am pleased to announce my first guest writer for crazysalad!
As part of a semester project for her Spanish class, my daughter, Tamara, researched one of her favorite drinks, Mexican horchata. She graciously gave me permission to reprint her report here. In exchange for photographs, she also let me taste some of her yummy homemade horchata before she took it off to share with her classmates.
Description and History of Horchata
In Mexico there is a group of beverages called “aguas frescas”, or fresh waters, made from a mixture of fruits, grains, or seeds, blended with sugar and water. The most popular flavors include agua de tamarindo, made with tamarind pods, agua de jamaica, made with hibiscus flowers, and agua de horchata, made with rice.
Horchata is a traditional Mexican cold beverage made of rice, almonds, canella, lime zest, and sugar. The Spaniards brought Horchata to the New World. The original horchata de chufas of Spain was made with tigernuts, or chufas, which are a species of sedge plant originally cultivated in Egypt. However, since chufas were not readily available in the New World, the Spaniards substituted ground squash seeds instead.
Later, almonds and rice were incorporated into the drink, and it evolved into the Mexican horchata that is drunk today. Horchata de chufas is still a common beverage in Spain, but in Latin America, the rice-based horchata is more prevalent. And even now in the U.S., especially in San Diego, one can find horchata in many Mexican restaurants and grocery stores.
Different Types of Horchata
Even among rice-based horchatas there are many different variants. Ingredients often include cinnamon, vanilla, orange, or lime. Horchata in El Salvador uses ground cocoa and sesame seeds instead of almonds. My friend, Lupé, says when she was growing up in Mexico, her mother made horchata with ground cantaloupe seeds. Horchata is also available as a powdered mixture or concentrate at Mexican grocery stores.
Horchata Tasting
After I made my horchata, I compared it to horchatas from various restaurants and stores in San Diego. Here are the results:
Mama Testa Horchata – According to Cesar, owner of Mama Testa restaurant in Hillcrest, their horchata is made from a coconut oil-based syrup that is mixed with water in a dispenser. It was sweet, milky in color, and good, but didn’t taste quite like horchata, in my opinion.
Porkyland Horchata – This horchata had a strong taste of cinnamon and vanilla. It also had a strange oily aftertaste and it was very, very sweet.
Bottled concentrate “Fiesta” brand – This concentrate contained only milk, sugar, rice, and cinnamon. The directions called for 1 part concentrate to 7 parts water, which seemed a little thin. It tasted mildly sweet, but more like sugar water than rice.
Powdered mix “Klass” brand – This contained a lot of sugar, hydrogenated oils and preservatives. There was definitely not enough mix for the quart of water the instructions called for, and it did not even taste like horchata. It tasted medicinal or almost like a bizarre sort of candy.
Horchata de Oaxaca Recipe
(from Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico by Rick Bayless & Deann Groen Bayless)
Time: Active involvement about 20 minutes, plus soaking time
Yield: About a quart, or 6 servings
6 tablespoons rice
6 ounces (1 1/4 c.) blanched almonds
1 inch cinnamon stick
Three 2-inch strips of lime zest
1 cup sugar
1. Soaking the rice and almonds. Thoroughly pulverize the rice in a blender or spice grinder. Transfer to a medium-size bowl and add the almonds, cinnamon stick and lime zest. Stir in 2 cups of hot water, cover and let stand at least 6 hours, or preferably, overnight.
2. Blending and straining. Scoop the mixture into the blender jar and blend for 3 or 4 minutes, until it no longer feels very gritty. Add 2 cups of water, then blend for a few seconds more. Set a large sieve over a mixing bowl and line with 3 layers of dampened cheesecloth. Pour in the almond-rice mixture a little at a time, gently stirring to help the liquid pass through. When all has been strained, gather up the corners of the cheesecloth and twist them together to trap the dregs inside. Squeeze the package firmly to expel the remaining liquid.
3. Finishing the horchata. Add 2 cups of water and stir in enough sugar to sweeten the drink to your taste. If the consistency is too thick, add additional water. Cover and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. Stir before pouring.
I'm getting ready to head off on a trip to Tokyo with my family. I've never been before, so I'm really looking forward to eating lots of sushi, ramen, and shabu shabu. Tops on my list of places to visit are the Tsukiji Fish Market, tea shops and the department store food halls.
Itte kimasu!
