Comida Azteca

Food preparation

The main method of preparation was boiling or steaming in two-handled clay pots or jars called xoctli in Nahuatl and translated into Spanish as olla ("pot"). The olla was filled with food and heated over a fire. It could also be used to steam food by pouring a little water into the olla and then placing tamales wrapped in maize husks on a light structure of twigs in the middle of the pot. There are several references to frying in the accounts of Spanish chroniclers, but the only specification of the Aztec type of frying appears to be some kind of cooking that was done with syrup, not cooking fat. This is corroborated by the fact that no evidence for large-scale extraction of vegetable oils exist and that no cooking vessels suited for frying have been found by archeologists.
Tortillas, tamales, casseroles and the sauces that went with them were the most common dishes. Chili and salt were both ubiquitous and the most basic meal was usually just tortillas that were dipped in chilis that had been ground in a mortar with a little water. Dough could be used to encase meat, sometimes even whole turkeys, before cooking. In major Aztec towns and cities there were vendors that sold street food of all kinds, catering to both the rich and poor. Other than ingredients and prepared food every imaginable type of atolli could be bought, either to quench one's thirst or as an instant meal in liquid form.