Hijos del maíz, children of corn

Corn is native to Mexico and evidence found in Tehuacán, Puebla indicates that its cultivation began 10,000 years ago. Their domestication allowed nomadic groups to become sedentary and allowed the development of the Meso-American peoples.

Elote, as it was called in Meso-America, was the most consumed by pre-Hispanic cultures. It was used for the manufacture of food but also as an important offering during religious ceremonies. The development of Aztec, Mayan, Zapotec, Mixtec, Purhepechas, Totonaques, Mazatec, Chinantecas, Zoques groups... is partly based on the cultivation and exploitation of this grain. It is very often represented in their writings, songs and legends in the form of glyphs, motifs or deities.

Native corn has been preserved by the practice of selecting seeds that farmers carry out year after year. They are different from those generated by crossbreeding or GMO improvement methods. These many varieties have great potential to provide useful information to deal with climate change and tomorrow's food in the future. There are more than 60 varieties of Mesoamerican corn from a careful selection of various indigenous groups. The Mexican government promotes the preservation and use of the biodiversity of indigenous corn varieties to ensure the food security of rural communities in the country. The most common colors of corn are white, yellow, black, red and pinto, but the SINAREFI (National System of Phylogenetic Resources) has highlighted a wide range of shades composed of white, creamy white, light yellow, dark yellow, orange, light red, dark red, blue, dark blue, black, pink, purple, coffee, pinted, variegated, jass and spotted, colors that give life to the great diversity of corn in our country. In the villages, each shade of color is associated with a particular culinary use:

• White: starched with lactic notes.

• Yellow: less starchy than white but with buttery notes.

• Red: contains floral notes with nuances similar to those of walnuts or almonds.

• Black: complex with notes of mushrooms.

  
  

At Alegrías, we use different types of corn flour for our recipes, in order to make these new flavors known to the French public. All our tacos are made from white corn tortillas or blue or red corn quesadillas.

See you at our Alegrias restaurant at 67 avenue Parmentier, 75011 Paris.

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