() is a type of flour made from ground toasted barley or other toasted grains. It is used in Bolivian, Ecuadorian and Peruvian cuisine.
History Spanish colonists brought the technique of toasting grain to enhance its nutritional value, then grinding the toasted grain into flour, from Central America to the Andean region. The Mesoamerican product, , uses toasted corn, but in Ecuador the process was applied primarily to barley.
Production Grain is toasted, then ground finely.
Uses
is used in a variety of foods that are part of Andean cuisine. These include , an herbal tea decoction made with lemongrass, lemon verbena or other herbs; another beverage called made by mixing the with hot or cold liquid; , a nougat confection made using (unrefined cane sugar), eggs, and a variety of walnut called ; , a variety of bread baked using in addition to untoasted flour; —akin to but distinct from —a beverage prepared in a manner similar to but which also includes ground and spices such as anise, cinnamon and cloves; , any of a variety of savory soups or stews thickened with ; and , a cake baked with . Soups to which is added typically have a base of carrots, legumes, onions and potatoes, and may or may not contain meat. It is used to batter and season meat to be fried, such as pork rinds or shellfish including shrimp. is sometimes also added to hot chocolate or cold juice, and has been used to flavor ice cream. It is incorporated into stroopwafels (a cookie which originated in the Netherlands) made in Peru and filled with other Andean ingredients such as passion fruit and chicha. Some indigenous peoples use to prepare , a traditional meat.
Nutritional value One hundred grams of made from barley contains 344 calories (kcal), 8.6 grams protein, 0.7 g fat, 77.4 grams carbohydrates, 6.6 g fiber, 74 mg calcium, 320 mg phosphorus, 12.3 mg iron, 0.12 mg vitamin B1, 0.25 mg vitamin B2, 8.7 mg niacin, and 1.9 mg vitamin C. For máchica made from wheat, 100 grams contain 347 calories, 7.9 g protein, 1.2 g fat, 79.9 g carbohydrates, 4.1 g fiber, 67 mg calcium, 0.9 mg iron, and 2.7 mg vitamin C.
Other varieties In Peru, the product sold as is most often made of toasted corn flour. It is mixed with sugar and cinnamon in a manner similar to both Central American and Ecuadorian . may also refer to flour made with ground toasted wheat, a variation also found in Peru, as well as in Bolivia, where it is the most common type of .
See also Barley flour Gofio, a similar product in the Canary Islands, brought to Latin America
References