Chiltomate: what it is, how it's made and uses in Yucatán

What is it?

Chiltomate is the most representative base sauce of Yucatecan cuisine. Its name comes from the Nahuatl words 'chilli' (chilli) and 'tomatl' (tomato), reflecting its two essential ingredients: red tomato and chilli, generally habanero. It is prepared by roasting the tomatoes on the comal until the skin blackens, mixing them with onion, roasted chilli, salt and sometimes garlic, to blend or grind them in a molcajete until a rustic salsa with chunks is obtained. It is the classic accompaniment to huevos motuleños, panuchos, salbutes, papadzules and many other Yucatecan antojitos. Outside the Peninsula, the term is also used in Chiapas, Tabasco and parts of Campeche, where local variants exist. Its flavour combines the sweetness of the roasted ripe tomato with the fruity heat of the habanero, reaching between 5,000 and 15,000 Scoville units in its most typical versions.

Origin and history

Chiltomate is a sauce of pre-Hispanic root that combines two ingredients domesticated in Mesoamerica thousands of years ago: chilli and tomato. The Maya peoples of the Yucatán Peninsula already ate similar preparations before the arrival of the Spanish, according to ethnobotanical documentation gathered by the INAH and by scholars such as Sylvia Terán and Christian Rasmussen. Fray Diego de Landa, in his 'Account of the Things of Yucatán' (16th century), mentioned the widespread use of tomato and chilli among the Maya. The term 'chiltomate' appears established in Mexican culinary literature in the 19th century as a synonym for the Yucatecan base sauce. During the 20th century, with the development of tourist regional gastronomy in Mérida and Valladolid, chiltomate positioned itself as an iconic element and regional emblem. Today it is one of the pillars of contemporary Yucatecan cuisine, present on the menus of traditional and modern restaurants.

Characteristic ingredients

The traditional recipe uses well-ripened guaje or saladette tomato, roasted whole on the comal until the skin blisters and blackens. The habanero chilli is roasted separately, also whole, so as not to burn it too much and to preserve its characteristic fruity aroma. Both are then ground in a molcajete or blender with white onion, a little salt and, optionally, garlic, sour orange and coriander. There are regional variants: in Yucatán the version with a whole habanero 'pressed' so as not to release all the heat is usual; in Campeche the x'catic is preferred instead of the habanero; in Tabasco amashito chilli is used and coriander is added. Some families prefer to char the garlic and onion too to enhance the smoky flavour. The texture can be coarse or smooth, and it is served warm or at room temperature. It is not a spicy sauce by default: the habanero chilli is incorporated more for aroma than for heat, although it can be adjusted to taste.

Cultural significance

Chiltomate is one of the pillars of the Yucatecan recipe book and appears in practically all the regional cuisine. Bathing huevos motuleños with hot chiltomate is a gesture as emblematic as cutting a panucho by hand. This sauce forms part of the culinary corpus of Traditional Mexican Cuisine, recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2010 with special emphasis on Michoacán but extending to all the regional cuisines. SECTUR and the government of Yucatán promote chiltomate as one of the fundamental flavours for understanding peninsular gastronomic identity, alongside recado rojo, x'nipek and cochinita pibil. Economically, emblematic restaurants such as La Chaya Maya or Kuuk have taken chiltomate into the realm of fine dining, while in the markets of Mérida, Valladolid and Izamal it is sold fresh and loose every morning to accompany the Yucatecan breakfast.

Frequently asked questions