Quelites: a guide to Mexico's edible herbs

What is it?

Quelites are a broad and diverse set of edible herbs, tender leaves and shoots that have been eaten in Mexico since pre-Hispanic times. The word comes from the Nahuatl quilitl, meaning edible herb, and groups more than 350 documented plant species, including quintonil, huauzontle, papaloquelite, romeritos, epazote, purslane, alaches, quelite cenizo and chaya. They grow wild or semi-cultivated in the milpa, that Mesoamerican agricultural system combining maize, beans, squash and useful spontaneous plants. They are eaten in soups, broths, stews, tlacoyos, tamales, quesadillas and salads. They represent a pillar of Mexican rural cuisine, a symbol of food biodiversity and a key component of the traditional diet championed today by contemporary cuisine and by movements in favour of food sovereignty.

Origin and history

The consumption of quelites goes back at least 8,000 years in Mesoamerica, according to archaeobotanical research at sites such as the Coxcatlan Cave (Tehuacan, Puebla), excavated by Richard MacNeish between 1960 and 1965. Remains of Chenopodium, Amaranthus and Portulaca were found there, showing that these herbs already formed part of the diet of the first farmers of the continent. Fray Bernardino de Sahagun, in Book XI of the Historia general de las cosas de Nueva Espana (16th century), devoted whole chapters to describing dozens of quelites with their Nahuatl names, their culinary uses and their medicinal properties. The Florentine, Badianus and Mendoza codices record names such as tzicquilitl, quiltonile, mexixquilitl and huautli. After the Conquest, quelites resisted the mestizaje process because they grew spontaneously among European crops, and many indigenous peoples kept gathering and consuming them. SADER and Larousse Cocina agree in pointing to them as one of the most living pre-Hispanic legacies of today's Mexican cuisine.

Characteristic ingredients

Quelites are not a single plant but a cultural category that includes very different botanical families: Amaranthaceae (quintonil, quelite cenizo, huauzontle), Asteraceae (papaloquelite, papalo, pipicha), Portulacaceae (purslane), Chenopodiaceae (romeritos), Polygonaceae (lengua de vaca), Euphorbiaceae (chaya), Malvaceae (alaches), Brassicaceae (mustard), Solanaceae (hierba mora) and Piperaceae (hoja santa, acuyo). Each species has its own aromatic and nutritional profile: quintoniles are mild, papalos intense and resinous, romeritos mineral, huauzontle sweet and alaches mucilaginous. All share a high content of protein, fibre, calcium, iron, vitamin A and vitamin C, according to studies by INSP and FAO. They are eaten tender, generally cooked Mexican-style with epazote, garlic, onion and chilli, although some such as papalo and purslane are also eaten raw. Their gathering is linked to the rainy season from May to October and is concentrated in the rural markets of the highlands and central Mexico.

Cultural significance

Quelites are a central part of the dossier of traditional Mexican cuisine inscribed in 2010 by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, where they are recognised as an identity element of the milpa and the Mesoamerican diet. Their gathering remains a significant economic and cultural activity for Nahua, Mazahua, Otomi, Zapotec, Mixtec and Maya communities, particularly for rural women who sell them fresh at tianguis. FAO has highlighted them as a key resource for food security and nutrition in contexts of poverty. Various collectives such as Quelites de Mexico, peasant organisations and chefs such as Enrique Olvera, Edgar Nunez and Jorge Vallejo have championed them in contemporary haute cuisine, integrating them into the menus of internationally awarded restaurants. Researchers at CIESAS, El Colegio de Mexico and UNAM have documented their agroecological importance, their nutritional value and their role in the intergenerational transmission of traditional culinary knowledge.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between quelites and vegetables?

Quelites are a Mesoamerican cultural category that includes wild or semi-cultivated herbs, leaves and shoots eaten since pre-Hispanic times, while vegetables tend to be garden-cultivated crops, many of European or Asian origin. Quelites include more than 350 species of very diverse botanical families; vegetables form a more limited set of intensive crops.

What do quelites taste like?

The flavour varies enormously depending on the species. Quintoniles and quelite cenizo are reminiscent of spinach; papaloquelite and papalo are intense, herbal and resinous; romeritos have a mineral and slightly saline profile; purslane is juicy and citrusy; huauzontle is sweet and vegetal; epazote is strong and minty. The diversity of flavours is one of their greatest attractions.

How are quelites served?

Traditionally they are cooked in salted water, drained and added to stews with tomato, chilli and epazote, to tlacoyos, quesadillas, tamales, soups, sweetcorn broths and scrambled eggs. Some such as papalo, pipicha and purslane are also eaten raw in tacos and salads. Regional recipes are very diverse, from Oaxacan mole verde to the quelite broths of the State of Mexico.

Where are quelites originally from?

They are native to Mesoamerica, with a core of greatest diversity in central and southern Mexico. Their gathering and semi-domestication are associated with the milpa system, where they grow as spontaneous companions of maize, beans and squash. The main producing and consuming regions are the State of Mexico, Puebla, Tlaxcala, Morelos, Hidalgo, Oaxaca, Chiapas and Veracruz.