Why Real Tortillas Taste Different: Nixtamalization (Ancient Indigenous Food Technology)

ortillas aren’t just food — they’re Indigenous technology. 🌽🔥
In this 13-minute episode of The Global Latin Factor Podcast, Crispin Valentin explains nixtamalization (how corn becomes masa) and why it changed tortillas, tamales, and nutrition across Mexico and Central America.

Comment: Did you know “nixtamalization” before this? What’s your favorite masa-based food?

#Nixtamalization #Tortillas #Masa #LatinoCulture #foodscience 

Transcript

I am about to say something very bold. One of the most important food technologies on earth was created by indigenous and Meso America individuals long ago before modern labs and millions eat it still of the result of this without even knowing the name. Are you ready to know what it is? If you ever eaten a tortilla, a tamal p so at you experienced an ancient invention that changed nutrition and food systems forever. It's called nixamalization. Nixamalization or nixamal. And today I am breaking down simple but deep because this isn't just food. This is Latino and indigenous genius. Indigenous genius in Nikamar. What's good Pamelia? My name is Krispine Valentine. I am your host, the Global Latin Factor podcast. Thank you so much for being here where we talk about Latino everything. Make sure you subscribe to the channel right now if you have not done so to enjoy more amazing episodes that we have for you today. Today's episode is for everybody who loves tacos. For anybody who's ever wondered why the real tortillas taste different. So, let's get into it. For starters, what is nikamalization or niktamal? Simple definition. Nixamal is this. You take dry corn, you cook it and soak it in alkaline water. Usually water with kal or calcium hydroxide. Then you rinse it and the outer skin loosens and you grind it into masa. Yep, that's it. That's what nistamal is. That's what namalization is. But that one one step changes the food in major ways. Texture, processing, and nutrition. This isn't an opinion. This is documented in scient scientific literature including classic peer review papers in science on traditional alkaline mice processing. A tortilla is not just food. A tortilla is technology. Now imagine this in Meso America maise becomes a major staple meaning the whole community relies on this daily. So if your civilization depends on one staple, you need it to be workable, tasty and sustain and sustainable. Now Nick stamile solves multiple problems at once. It makes corn easier to grind. It makes dough that holds together and it improves nutritional outcome compared to untreated mice. Even modern research continues studying how processing condition changes digestibility and functional properties in tortilla and masa. Now, here's something that I wanted to make super super clear. Nickamal is an old history. It's not a museum process at all. is still alive today and at home and industrial scales across Mexico and Central America according to Simmit or CIMM YT, one of the most respectable global MAI research institutes. And we also have scientific institutes data showing how significant maise base foods are specific in Central American countries. For example, major technological review documents in food review internationals hosted in INCAP libraries. ENCAP is the Institute of Nutrition of Central America and Panama reports. maise intake and tortilla consumption patterns for countries like Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and even provides a data points like average mayise intake and references to tortilla consumption including Costa Rica in this particular report. So yes, when you say tortilla culture, we're talking about living daily food reality in multiple countries, not just one region. and outside Latin America. This tradition is also carried strongly through Latino diasporas specifically in the United State where masa tortilla and harmony style alkaline treatic corn foods are widely eaten in Mexican-American and indigenous communities. Harmony is essentially alkaline treated mais a close relative process. Nixamal or nixamalization is an ancient history. It's still feeding whole countries today. The world copy corn but not the process. Here's a real historical lesson. When my yeast spread to other parts of the world, some places adopted the crop but did not adopt the alkaline process method. Scientific discussions of traditional maise processing explains why alkaline treatment can improve nutritional quality and why health outcomes differ when the method isn't used. saw the world copy the corn but not the process of dick stamman which was very crucial and gamechanging the chemistry without the voing part quick transl uh quick translation alkaline is the opposite of acidic lemon juice lemon juice is acidic cow water is alkaline when corn is cooked and soaked in alkaline water the outer layer loosens And the kernel or the kernels change in that way it makes it grindable and doughy friendly. That's why masa behaves the way that it does and why tortilla behaves the way tortilla does. Tortillas can carry more calcium where others than others. When lime is used, calcium levels can increase in the final product. And scientists have studied how processing affects material and components like fitic and fitic acid which can influence mineral availability. So depending on how it's made tortillas can be more nutritionally meaningful than people assume the origin. Let's talk about the evidence and the hypothesis. Now how was Nick discovered? We don't have a single documented day or day one but we have a strong hypothesis supporting by supported by experiments. Hypothesis number A or hypothesis letter A the ash the ash theory or story the ash from the fire made the water alkaline. Some people notice the corn change possible but it's not confirmed as the origin. Now hypothesis letter B limestone stone boil it heated limestone and it was used and it can make cooking water alkaline at this is supported by experimental that it was done by archaeologist showing stone boiling mise with limestone can create an alkaline condition consistent with nikamal that's one and hypothesis c intentional innovation The respectful explanation. People experimented deliberately to improve grindability, dough, and taste. Then refined the method that spread and stuck all over the place that we still get to try today. The respectful version is this. They weren't lucky. They were experimenting and they were doing it on purpose. This is a big one. Corn can be affected by molds that produce toxins lie fumissence and nixamal has been studied as a process that reduces fomunisence in tortillas made by traditional methods. A peer-reviewed study in the journal of nutrition reports tortillas made with traditional nikamar in Mayan communities showed about 50% reduction total in fuminiscent so it's not only the taste it can also be food safety technology namalization isn't just flavor it can be food safety tech some tortillas taste dead. Let's be real, they do. Some of them really do. Not all tortillas are equal. Let's be real. They're not. So, some tortillas taste just like cardboard. They're horrible. They're terrible for you. By the way, if you have a tortilla, cardboard, move on. You need to a better one. You know what I mean? You know what I'm talking about. When you eat a fresh tortilla with real masa and it tastes just alive. The aroma, the elasticity, the flavor is just so different. So good. That different comes from the process control, the lime level, the cook time, the steep time, washing intensity and the grind. Scientists have even studied how washing intensity affects the tortilla texture and properties. Now, let me ask you this and well, let's walk through this. Dry corn, rinse spot, water at cow, heat up, cook until ready, mush, and guess what? You can turn this amazing thing into and you sometimes you have to soak it overnight. And once you have that, you can have yourself a nice nikamal. You rinse it, you rub it, you loosen all the outer layers. Now you have nikstamal. Grind it into masa. From the masa you get tortillas, tamales, soapes, gordas, clooyos, a whole universe from masa. And again, a universe of amazing dishes that we typically get to eat every single day. How do we know it's ancient? Archaeologists, that's why. How do we know people were doing it this long? Because scientists can identify evidence of nixamalization mais archaeologists and research have reported direct archaeological evidence among the ancient Mayas in Guatemala. So isn't just tradition is documented. This isn't just a cool fact. This is identity. People reduce Latino culture to stereotype it. But nickstamization proves or nickstamat proves we engineer food systems. We created chemical processing methods. We build nutritional practical into culture and we passed it down for generations to generations. We didn't just cook, we engineered. So, next time you eat a tortilla, pause for a moment, take a second, smell it, taste it, and remember this is ancient chemistry still feeding people to this day worldwide. So, drop a comment. Did you know what Nickamization was? And what is your favorite masa food? Is it tamales? Is it tortillas? Soapes? Whatever it is, just let us know. If you learned something today, hit the like button, subscribe, share with a friend, share with somebody that can be enlightened, especially somebody that loves tacos. And because they're going to be like, "What? Wait, what' you say, Crispen?" Exactly. That is exactly what it is. So, this was the Global Land Factor podcast. Much love to you. Thank you so much for being a consistent listener, consistent watcher of our episodes. Remember once again to subscribe. I can't tell you enough. You It cost nothing but you do us a major favor. And remember, we are just like you. We are people. We are the spice and flavor in this melting pot. Dinner is the world. Till next time.