WHY A VEGAN TRAVELER SHOULD REALLY VISIT GUATEMALA

What (lovely) images do these words conjure up; Maya, Vegan, Chocolate, corn tortillas, Guacamole? A quick history lesson.

Guatemala's history goes back four thousand years when the Mayan civilization emerged and whose legacy is still evident today in the lives, traditions and culture of the locals. 

So what’s the link between the Maya, chocolate and vegan friendly holidays, why should we be grateful to this ancient Guatemalan civilisation?

Because, after years of cultivation and farming they discovered and developed many foods which are on the vegan friendly favorite list all over the world;

Avocados and Guacamole

Panza verde (green belly) is the nickname given to the locals in Guatemala due to the amount of avocado’s they eat. Avocados are native to Guatemala and plentiful, a treasured crop and source of income for many. 

Guacamole, it’s not complicated but it is amazing; mash up some ripe avocodo’s with a fork, add a little lime juice, season to taste with salt and pepper, chop up some fresh cilantro and get stuck in with some fresh corn tortilla chips.

Chocolate

How do you like yours? I like mine so thick that I have to eat it with a spoon! 

The Maya, who, lets remember have already got the guacamole going on went on to achieve greater (vegan friendly) things; chocolate. 

They were the first to roast the seeds of the cacao plant to make what we now know as hot chocolate but they weren't into vegan junk food and didn’t add sugar to theirs, just a few chilli’s every now and again. Cacao beens were thought to have been used as a currency and the drink would have been more medicinal in it’s use. We actually have the Spanish to thank for sweetening the hot chocolate up as upon their arrival in Central America in the 1500’s they  began adding sugar and milk to make the kind of hot chocolate we are familiar with today.

Jugo de Jamaica

You’ll see this on nearly all menu’s and lunch tables in Guatemala, jugo dejamaica is a hibiscus flower tea made by infusing the hibiscus flowers and hot water, the perfect refreshing drink after having hiked a volcano (although an amazing experience, volcano hiking is not compulsory, you could just go and do a yoga class and then have jugo de jamaica).

Corn tortillas

Imagine the sound of female hands making a gentle, rhythmic kind of clapping sound, it’s the sound of fresh corn tortillas being made, an essential part of the indigenous maya diet and perfect accompaniment to arroz con frijoles, Guatemala’s vegan friendly staple dish, rice and beans.

All tortillas start with a kind of dough, known as masa which is just corn flour and water, moulded into a ball and the flattened into small neat circles they are then cooked on a comal which is a wood fired iron cooking device.

OVER TO YOU

If there any other vegan friendly culinary experiences you would like to have in Guatemala then please let me know Let me know in the comments box below.

DECEMBER EXPERIENCES

Vegan dinner parties, organic farms, chocolate workshops, nature walks, vegan Guatemalan cooking class and more on this years New Year's Eve Special here >>>