Tejate: what it is, what's in it and how it's made

What is it?

Tejate is a cold ceremonial drink originating in the state of Oaxaca, regarded by Mixtec-Zapotec culture as 'the drink of the gods'. It is made with cooked maize (nixtamal), toasted cacao, dried cacao flower (cacahoaxóchitl), toasted mamey stone (pixtle) and rosita de cacao (rosita or flower), all ground on a metate to a very fine paste that is diluted with water. The most distinctive feature of tejate is its layer of dense, hard white foam that floats on the surface of the jug, formed by whisking it with the hands, a technical heritage handed down directly from the pre-Hispanic cacao documented by Sahagún. It is served cold in painted gourd vessels decorated with traditional motifs. It is an indispensable ritual drink at festivities, weddings, wakes and agricultural rituals in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, especially in San Andrés Huayápam, San Felipe Tejalápam and the city of Oaxaca.

Origin and history

Tejate is one of the pre-Hispanic drinks that has best preserved its original recipe into the twenty-first century. Its origin dates back to the Mixtec and Zapotec cultures of Oaxaca, with a documented presence since the Mesoamerican Classic period (250-900 AD). The name comes from the Nahuatl 'texatl', meaning 'floured water', referring to the texture. Sahagún, in the sixteenth-century Florentine Codex, describes similar drinks made with frothed cacao among the peoples of the central highlands, but Oaxacan tejate preserves unique characteristics: the inclusion of cacao flower, pixtle and rosita are specific to the Mixtec-Zapotec tradition. Larousse Cocina identifies it as one of the most representative drinks of Oaxaca and of Mexico's living pre-Hispanic heritage. San Andrés Huayápam, a small village of the Central Valleys, is regarded as the capital of tejate: every year, on the last Monday of July, the Tejate Fair is held, where dozens of tejateras compete for the best product. The tejateras, Mixtec and Zapotec women, have passed the recipe down orally for generations, preserving a culinary continuity of more than a thousand years.

Characteristic ingredients

Tejate requires specific ingredients that are not easy to obtain outside Oaxaca: nixtamalised white maize (cooked with lime according to pre-Hispanic tradition), toasted criollo cacao, dried cacao flower (cacahoaxóchitl, Quararibea funebris), pixtle (toasted, ground mamey stone, Pouteria sapota) and rosita de cacao (Quararibea cordata or variants). Some tejateras add cinnamon and modern sugar, although purists prefer the original recipe without sugar. The preparation is laborious: all the solids are ground several times on a warm metate until an extremely fine paste is achieved. The resulting paste is diluted with cold water in a large gourd vessel and whisked vigorously with the hands, rubbing against the clay bottom until the characteristic white foam forms and rises to the surface. This foam is 'the flower of the tejate' and must remain floating on serving. A single tejatera takes up to six hours to prepare a complete batch. The resulting product tastes of toasted cacao, nixtamalised maize, flowers and exotic woods, with a foam of solid floating texture impossible to replicate industrially. It is served cold with a little extra foam on top of each gourd vessel.

Cultural significance

Tejate is one of the most sacred drinks of Mexico's living culinary heritage. Traditional Mexican cuisine, UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2010, identifies tejate among the most representative preparations of the state of Oaxaca, considered the epicentre of that designation. In San Andrés Huayápam, the Tejate Fair on the last Monday of July (part of the Guelaguetza festivities) brings together dozens of traditional tejateras in competition and exhibition. The tejateras, almost exclusively indigenous Mixtec and Zapotec women, are guardians of an ancestral knowledge passed down orally for more than a thousand years. Their craft sustains family and community economies in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca. Tejate also features at weddings, baptisms, wakes and agricultural rituals such as the Day of the Dead celebrations and patron-saint festivals. Specific ingredients such as the pixtle and rosita de cacao are harvested by hand, generating a sustainable agroforestry economy in rural communities. Recent efforts by the Government of Oaxaca and INAH have documented tejate as the intangible cultural heritage of the state.

Frequently asked questions

What does tejate taste like?

It tastes of toasted cacao with nixtamalised maize, with soft floral notes from the cacao flower and the rosita, and a slightly woody undertone from the pixtle. The texture is dense, slightly granular, with a solid floating foam of neutral flavour. It is not sweet in its traditional version, although some modern tejateras add sugar. It distantly recalls bitter pre-Hispanic chocolate but with a unique floral complexity.

What is the flower of the tejate?

It is the layer of dense, hard white foam that floats on the surface of the jug or gourd vessel when served. It is formed by vigorously whisking the paste with the hands against the bottom of the vessel. It is the mark of quality of tejate: the greater the quantity and firmness of the flower, the better the preparation is considered. This frothing technique has a pre-Hispanic origin, documented by Sahagún for the chocolate of the Mexica in the sixteenth century.

Where does tejate come from?

It originates in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, with Mixtec-Zapotec pre-Hispanic roots documented since the Mesoamerican Classic period. San Andrés Huayápam, a small village near the city of Oaxaca, is considered the traditional capital of tejate. It is also made in San Felipe Tejalápam, San Antonino Castillo Velasco and the city of Oaxaca itself. Its name comes from the Nahuatl texatl, 'floured water'.

What is pixtle?

The pixtle is the stone or seed of the mamey fruit (Pouteria sapota), slowly toasted and ground to an intensely aromatic powder. It is an irreplaceable ingredient of authentic tejate: it provides a characteristic, slightly bitter woody flavour and emulsifying properties that help form the foam. Outside Oaxaca it is very difficult to obtain, so authentic tejate can only be made in places with access to traditional regional ingredients.