Maya flavours of Guatemala

Until its Spanish conquest in the 16th and 17th centuries, Guatemala was the land of the Maya, who built magnificent jungle cities and cultivated crops like corn (maize), beans and squashes. Today their towering temples lie in ruins, but around 6.5 million descendants still live in a country whose cuisine is a rich blend of Indigenous and Hispanic heritage.

Dubbed ‘The Land of Eternal Spring’ thanks to its temperate climate, Guatemala has no shortage of fresh produce, which is sold at buzzing weekly markets. The main crop is corn, which was sacred to the Maya (who believed humans were formed from it) and appears at almost every meal: from soft tortillas baked on a flat griddle to squishy tamales (corn dough wrapped in a flat maxan leaf and steamed). Other local ingredients include beans, usually served mashed and fried, and mouth-watering mangos, which you can buy at roadside stalls sprinkled with chilli and lemon.

Guatemala’s varied landscapes have also played a role in the food you find today. In the chilly western highlands, warming recados (thick, spiced stews) are commonplace after a long day of hiking, whereas you will find that seafood and coconut milk feature far higher on menus along the Caribbean coast.
In cosmopolitan towns such as Guatemala City and Antigua, there is no shortage of elegant restaurants offering excellent meals at international prices. The cheapest way to explore Guatemala’s culinary diversity is at street-food stalls and at the local comedores (eateries), which serve delicious and filling set menus that are worth far more than what you pay.

Did you know?

Guatemala is the birthplace of chocolate, which was discovered by the Maya. They consumed it as a bitter drink flavoured with chilli and spices, and even buried their royals with chocolate pots as offerings to the gods. Cacao pods were so valuable that the Maya traded them as currency. Today, chocolate shops in many Guatemalan cities offer excellent chocolate-making workshops.

5 dishes you should try (and where to try them)

1. Pepián

Often dubbed ‘Guatemala’s national dish’, this rich, velvety stew is a highland comfort food handed down through generations of Maya. Tomatoes, pan-toasted pumpkin and sesame seeds, dried chilli and cinnamon give the sauce its sweet, nutty flavour and smooth texture. It’s usually spooned over chicken, served alongside rice and tortillas or tamales. At Café Sabor Cruceño in Santa Cruz on Lake Atitlán (amigosdesantacruz.org), your order comes with lake and volcano views, plus the warm glow of knowing that all restaurant profits go to helping the local community.

2. Jocón

Another traditional Mayan meal is the vivid green jocón, a warming stew made with coriander, mint, green jalapeño chillies, ground sesame and husked tomatillos. Eaten with chicken, pork or beef, jocón is pepián’s darker, spicier sister dish, and no exploration of Guatemalan cuisine is complete without tasting both. Try it at Flor Maya restaurant (+50 27 7631 303) in the highland city of Quetzaltenango, where the 2,330m elevation only adds to the experience.

3. Kak'ik

Blanketed with misty cloud forests, the central Alta Verapaz region is home to both Guatemala’s national bird (the quetzal) and the Q’eqchi Maya people. In their language, the suffix ‘ik’ means chilli, giving a clue to one of the key ingredients in this iconic dish. Kak-ik is a warming turkey soup made from a spiced red broth that includes cinnamon, cloves, tomatoes and chillies. The colour comes from ground achiote, a historic ingredient used by the Maya as a dye. The best place to try kak-ik is at El Peñascal (+50 27 951 2102) in regional capital Cobán.

4. Garnachas

Local markets are the beating heart of Guatemala’s towns and villages, and street food is the fuel that drives them. Top of the street menu here are garnachas, tortillas golden-fried on a griddle and then piled with savoury toppings like ground beef, refried beans, shredded cabbage, cheese and mustard. They are available everywhere from street-food stands, especially on national holidays and at festivals; you can even order them as a starter in restaurants.

5. Rellenitos de plátano

Desserts and cakes aren’t as much of a national institution in Guatemala as in some countries, but these traditional sweet croquettes are made from cooked and mashed plantain, which is then moulded into oblong balls, filled with refried beans (sometimes mixed with chocolate or cinnamon), deep-fried and topped with sugar. They’re not as tooth-achingly sweet as Brits and Americans might be used to, but those served at El Adobe restaurant in Guatemala City (+50 22 221 0567) are among the best in the business.