MESOAMERICAN PLANTS AND FOODS
Common names. English: cushaw (United States); Spanish: calabaza, calabaza pinta, calabaza pipiana (Mexico), pipián (Mexico, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica), saquil, pipitoria (Guatemala)
Common names. English: fig leaf squash. Malabar gourd, cidra, sidra; Nahuatl: chilacoyote (Mexico, Guatemala); Spanish: lacoyote (Peru, Bolivia, Argentina), chiverri (Honduras, Costa Rica), victoria (Colombia)
Common names. English: prince's feather; Spanish: huautli, alegría (Mexico), bledos (Mexico, Guatemala), amaranto
Within the great genetic diversity existing in Mesoamerica, which is the centre of origin and dispersion of numerous species, amaranths occupy a leading position. They constituted one of the five essential plants in the basic diet of the pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican civilizations and were an essential part of Aztec tributes
Common names English. sapote, mammee zapote, marmalade plum; Spanish: zapote. mamey zapoteo. mamey colorado, zapota grande; French: grosse sapote
Common names. English: Spanish plum, red mombin; Nahuatl:. ateyaxocotl; Spanish. jocose (Mexico [Oaxaca], Central America), ciruelo(Mexico[Jalisco,Yucatán])
Common names. English: tomatillo, husktomato, jamberry, ground cherry; Spanish: tomate de cascara, tomate de fresadilla, tomate milpero, tomate verde, tomatillo (Mexico), miltomate (Mexico, Guatemala)
In pre-Hispanic times in Mexico, it was preferred far more than the tomato
The name "tomato" derives from the Nahuatl "tomatl"; this word is a generic one for globose fruits or berries which have many seeds, watery flesh and which are sometimes enclosed in a membrane.The tomatillo has been a constant component of the Mexican and Guatemalan diet up to the present day, chiefly in the form of sauces prepared with its fruit and ground chilies to improve the flavour of meals and stimulate the appetite. The tomatillo is also used in sauces with green chili, mainly to lessen its hot flavour
Common names. English: scarlet runner bean; Spanish: ayocote (name of Nahuatl origin, central Mexico), patol (Mexico [Zacatecas]), botil (Mexico [Chiapas]), chomborote, piloy (high plateau of Guatemala), cubá (Costa Rica)
