All about Tepache
Tepache is a drink with a long history. In fact, it was drunk by indigenous peoples before the arrival of Columbus in South America and was even used by the Maya in religious ceremonies. The name Tepache comes from the Nahuatl word tepiātl, which roughly means ground corn drink. Corn was therefore the basis of the original recipe. Over the years, however, a fruit became the basis of tepache. The three key ingredients for today's tepache are pineapple, cinnamon and panela, a whole cane sugar - and of course water. Sometimes the pulp is used, sometimes the stalk and the rind. Depending on the region or even family, there are countless variations in which ginger or various spices are added. Regardless of the variation, tepache tastes best when it is ice cold.
In Mexico, tepache is so popular that you can buy it chilled in plastic bags in restaurants, bars or simply at street stalls, including a straw to go. Incidentally, if you leave tepache to stand for longer, the fermentation process will sooner or later produce alcohol. So it's no wonder that alcoholic tepache is often brewed in places where alcohol is not allowed - for example in Mexican prisons. In the south of the country, no less than 700 liters of the alcoholic variety were found in an underground tunnel system - cheers!
Are you curious? Then get your glasses ready and start fermenting - with or without alcohol is of course up to you.
For 2 liters of Tepache you need:
- 1 organic pineapple (approx. 800 g, without leaves)
- 200 g panela
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 liter of water
to taste:
- 2 cm fresh ginger
- 1 chili pepper
- ½ teaspoon allspice
Here's how it works:
Cut the pineapple into pieces and place in a jar with the remaining ingredients. Lightly crush the pineapple and pour water over the ingredients and seal your jar. Leave your tepache to ferment for 2-3 days at room temperature. It is important that you open the jar once a day so that the gases can escape and your jar does not burst. At the end of the fermentation time, you can taste your drink. The longer it stands, the more fizzy it becomes. If the tepache is to your taste, you can pour the liquid through a sieve into a glass and then store it in the fridge to stop the fermentation.
If you prefer to snack on your pineapple, you can also use just the stalk and the peel, but then you will need proportionally less of all the other ingredients, i.e. around a third. To be on the safe side, however, you can re-weigh to ensure that your drink ferments properly!
