Placing the best tortilla on Mexican tables would seem like a hard-to-accomplish goal. However, Cintli Tortillería has succeeded during the last few years due to its commitment to the defense and awareness of creole native Mexican maize from different communities.
Cintli is an unconventional tortillería that brings back Mesoamerican nixtamalization techniques and the use of different kinds of maize cobs. We are talking about a gastronomic project that offers nutrition, flavor, and quality to each of its products and fosters agroecological corn planting through different sustainable practices.
In Nahuatl, soft or tender corn is known as “cintli”, whilst mature corn is called “tlaolli”.
This small shop is located in the La Roma neighborhood and possesses an organic certification that confirms its fair trade and sustainable practices. Plus, the space distribution allows us to see how corn is stored and nixtamalized and how tortillas are kneaded, formed, and cooked. Different hybrid processes are used in Cintli, all of which take the best out of ancestral and industrial techniques used to manufacture the iconic Mexican tortilla.
For the Mexican food enthusiast José Castañón, tortillas are a value factor that compliments food with flavor, palatability, texture, and nutrients. Their importance in our gastronomy is such that they’re present in practically every traditional Mexican dish.
Through Cintli, José has dedicated himself to revolutionizing this versatile food by creating new versions of tortillas, such as the bean tortilla or the hoja santa one. As if it was not enough, he also created a line of superfood tortillas with flavors like spirulina, hemp, maca, matcha, and turmeric, inspiring new dishes and even tortilla-based desserts!
In Cintli, the lime used for nixtamalization is originated from the Popocatépetl and the tortilla mill is made out of volcanic rocks.
Each product in Cintli reflects the quality of its ingredients and production methods. You’ll find some of their most iconic tortillas inside our #ComeLocal boxes and experiment with the quality of a corn product with unique flavors and textures.
Don’t forget to follow us on our social media, Sabores México Food Tours, and stay tuned on our blog to get to know other small businesses we collaborate with and learn more about the interesting food producers inside #ComeLocal.
Cintli Tortillería- makesense MX Programa Impulso from pocoapoco.co on Vimeo.
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Article by: María José Ordóñez Platas
