Izote flower: what it is and how to cook it

What is it?

The izote flower is the edible inflorescence of the tree Yucca elephantipes (also classified as Yucca gigantea), an agave-family plant native to Central America and south-eastern Mexico. It flowers mainly between February and April, coinciding with Lent, which makes it a key plant food during Catholic abstinence. Its flowers are white, fleshy, bell-shaped, with soft petals and a slight bitter-sweet flavour reminiscent of artichoke or asparagus. It is consumed mainly in Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Tabasco and parts of Yucatán, where it is prepared battered with egg, in stews with tomato, in fritters in mole, in tamales, in soups and in revoltijo with romeritos. The Zoque, Ch'ol, Totonac, Zapotec and Mixe peoples consider it a ritual ingredient of Lent and of patron-saint festivities, passing down knowledge about its gathering and preparation from generation to generation.

Origin and history

The consumption of the izote flower has deep pre-Hispanic roots in southern Mesoamerica. CONABIO's Enciclovida and the Universidad Veracruzana document its use among Olmecs, Totonacs, Zoques and Maya as a ritual, ornamental and medicinal food. Friar Bernardino de Sahagún describes in the Florentine Codex several species of palmilla and yucca whose flowers were consumed in the highlands. The flower gained prominence in mestizo cooking after colonial Catholic Lent, since its spring flowering coincides with the Catholic fast and vigil. Larousse Cocina and México Desconocido agree that in Chiapas and Oaxaca the revoltijo de izote has been prepared since the colonial period, similar to the revoltijo of romeritos but with this flower instead of quintoniles. The Mexican government, through the National Forestry Commission, recognises its gathering as sustainable non-timber forest use, since only the flowers are cut without affecting the plant, which flowers again the following year. In El Salvador it is the national flower and is known as flor de izote.

Characteristic ingredients

Yucca elephantipes is an evergreen tree with a thick trunk (elephant's foot) that grows up to 9 m, with long, lance-shaped, rigid leaves. Its Yucatec name is kii, in Nahuatl iczotl and in Maya kuyché. The flowers appear in erect panicles with hundreds of white bells. For consumption the bitter pistils in the centre are removed, since they contain saponins that produce gastric acidity. The cleaned flowers are blanched in boiling salted water, drained and prepared battered with egg and bathed in a tomato and guajillo chilli salsa; they are also used in izote soup with epazote, in stuffed tamales, in stews with black beans, or as an ingredient of the Oaxacan revoltijo de izote. They provide vitamin C, fibre, calcium and antioxidant flavonoids, according to bromatological studies by the Universidad Veracruzana. In contemporary cooking, chefs such as José Manuel Baños of the restaurant Pitiona (Oaxaca) and Marta Zepeda of Tierra y Cielo (Chiapas) have included the izote flower on tasting menus, reinterpreting its traditional preparation with modern techniques.

Cultural significance

The izote flower is part of the dossier of Traditional Mexican Cuisine inscribed by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010, particularly linked to the cuisines of Chiapas, Oaxaca and Veracruz. It is an essential element of the Lenten ritual calendar, along with romeritos, nopales and ahuautle, recalling the importance of vegetarian abstinence in Mexican popular religiosity. For the Zoque and Ch'ol peoples of Chiapas it also represents a symbol of fertility and abundance. Economically, its gathering generates significant seasonal income for indigenous communities, with prices that reach peaks during Lent. The Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve (Veracruz) protects ecosystems where it grows wild. Researchers from the College of the Southern Border (ECOSUR) and the INAH study its ethnobotanical value and conservation. In El Salvador, where it is the national flower, its culinary use parallels the Mexican one, which demonstrates the Mesoamerican cultural unity around this sacred plant of Central America.

Frequently asked questions

What does the izote flower taste like?

The izote flower has a bitter-sweet, slightly herbal flavour, reminiscent of young artichoke, tender asparagus and heart of palm. The bitterness comes from saponins present in the pistils, which is why these are removed before cooking it. After blanching in boiling water, its profile softens and allows it to be combined with egg, tomato salsa and chilli.

How is the izote flower cleaned?

The individual bells are separated from the stem, the bitter pistils in the centre (the filamentous part) are removed and they are rinsed in cold water. They are then blanched for 2-3 minutes in boiling salted water, drained and gently squeezed. This process removes the saponins and prepares the flower to be battered, stewed or incorporated into the Lenten revoltijo.

When is the izote flower gathered?

The main season runs from February to April, just during Lent, which has culturally linked this flower to the Lenten cooking of Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz and Tabasco. The gathering is done by cutting the whole panicles with a long pole or a knife. Smaller flowerings occur in August and September, according to the region and the rainfall pattern.

Where does the izote flower come from?

Yucca elephantipes is native to Central America and south-eastern Mexico, distributed from Veracruz and Oaxaca to Panama. In Mexico it is traditionally consumed in Chiapas, Oaxaca, Veracruz, Tabasco and parts of Yucatán by the Zoque, Ch'ol, Totonac, Zapotec and Mixe peoples. In El Salvador it has been the national flower since 1995 and is cooked in a similar way.