View source for Atole

{{short description|Mesoamerican hot corn beverage}}
{{distinguish|Atoll}}
{{redirect|Chuco|the genus of cichlid fish| Chuco (fish)}}
{{Infobox food
| name             = ''Atole''
| image            = Atole.jpg
| image_size       = 250px
| caption          = 
| alternate_name   = ''Atol''
| country          = Mexico
| region           = Mesoamerica
| creator          = 
| course           = 
| type             = [[Beverage]] or [[Porridge]]
| served           = Hot 
| main_ingredient  = ''[[Masa]]'', water, ''[[piloncillo]]'', [[cinnamon]], [[vanilla]]
| variations       = ''[[Champurrado]]''
| calories         = 
| other            = 
}}
'''''Atole''''' ({{IPA|es|aˈtole|lang|Atole1.ogg}}, believed to come from [[Nahuatl]] ''[[Aztec cuisine|ātōlli]]'' {{IPA|nah|aːˈtoːlːi|}} or from Mayan),<ref>{{Citation |last1=Davidson |first1=Alan |title=atole |date=2014-11-20 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780199677337.001.0001/acref-9780199677337-e-0109;jsessionid=F9656431A2FDC3ABBE9AD832E121E5F9 |work=The Oxford Companion to Food |editor-last=Jaine |editor-first=Tom |access-date=2023-03-03 |publisher=Oxford University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780199677337.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-19-967733-7 |last2=Jaine |first2=Tom|url-access=subscription }}</ref> also known as '''''atolli''''', '''''atol''''' and '''''atol de elote''''', is a traditional hot [[masa]]-based beverage of [[Mexicans|Mexican]] origin. Atole can have different flavors added, such as vanilla, cinnamon, and guava.<ref name="Blaser">{{Cite web |last=Blaser |first=Janet |date=2022-01-01 |title=Atole: beverage of champions |url=https://mexiconewsdaily.com/mexicolife/atole-beverage-of-champions/ |access-date=2023-03-03 |website=Mexico News Daily |language=en-US}}</ref> [[Chocolate]] ''atole'' is known as ''[[champurrado]]'' or simply ''atole''. It typically accompanies [[tamale]]s and is very popular during [[Day of the Dead]] (observed November 2) and ''[[Las Posadas]]'' (Christmas holiday season).

== Mayan origin ==
Many Classic Maya painted vessels feature a genre of inscriptions known as the "dedicatory formula" or the "primary standard sequence" (PSS) and the two main ingredients mentioned in the contents section of the PSS were cacao and atole.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Beliaev |first1=Dmitri |title=Sweet Cacao and Sour Atole: Mixed Drinks on Classic Maya Ceramic Vases |date=2010 |work=Pre-Columbian Foodways: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Food, Culture, and Markets in Ancient Mesoamerica |pages=257–272 |editor-last=Staller |editor-first=John |place=New York, NY |publisher=Springer |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-1-4419-0471-3_10 |isbn=978-1-4419-0471-3 |last2=Davletshin |first2=Albert |last3=Tokovinine |first3=Alexandre |editor2-last=Carrasco |editor2-first=Michael}}</ref>

==Regional variations==
{{stack|
[[File:Feria del Atole.JPG|thumb|Atole served at the Atole Fair in [[Coacalco de Berriozábal]], [[State of Mexico]].]]
[[File:100320 atol de elote guatemala.JPG|thumb|Atol de Elote in [[Guatemala]].]]
}}

===Mexico===
In Mexico, the drink typically includes ''masa'' (corn [[hominy]] flour), water, ''[[piloncillo]]'' (unrefined cane sugar), cinnamon, vanilla, and optional chocolate or fruit. The mixture is blended and heated before serving.  ''Atole'' is made by toasting ''masa'' on a ''[[Comal (cookware)|comal]]'' (griddle), then adding water that was boiled with cinnamon sticks.<ref name="Blaser" />

===Central America===
In Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua, ''atol de elote'' (maize ''atol''), or simply ''atole'', is a popular beverage. Pineapple ''atol'' (''atol de piña'') is also consumed in El Salvador. Guatemalan varieties include ''atol shuco'' ("dirty" ''atol'', a reference to its darker color), particularly popular in the city.<ref name="guanaquin-1">[http://www.guanaquin.com/mipais/cabanas/fiestas.shtml Fiestas Cabañas] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080321014732/http://www.guanaquin.com/mipais/cabanas/fiestas.shtml |date=March 21, 2008 }}, ''Guanaquín'' (in Spanish; includes recipe). Retrieved 2008-03-30.</ref>

===Guatemala===
In [[Guatemala]], the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development provided funding to INCAP to carry out a community randomized trial to test the hypothesis that improved protein intakes lead to better child development test scores.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Martorell |first=Reynaldo |date=April 1995 |title=History and Design of the INCAP Longitudinal Study (1969–77) and its Follow-Up (1988–89) |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022316623037550 |journal=The Journal of Nutrition |volume=125 |issue=4 |pages=1027S–1041S |doi=10.1093/jn/125.suppl_4.1027S |pmid=7536830 |url-access=subscription |doi-access=free }}</ref> They were given a high-protein atole-like beverage made from INCAPARINA (a vegetable protein mixture developed by INCAP which mainly contains corn), dry skim milk, sugar, and a flavoring agent.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Martorell |first=Reynaldo |date=24 January 2017 |title=Improved nutrition in the first 1000 days and adult human capital and health: MARTORELL |journal=American Journal of Human Biology |language=en |volume=29 |issue=2 |article-number=e22952 |doi=10.1002/ajhb.22952 |pmc=5761352 |pmid=28117514 }}</ref>

===New Mexico===
In [[New Mexico]], [[blue corn]] ''atole'' is finely ground cornmeal toasted for cooking, consumed  as a grainy [[porridge]]-style drink served warm, usually sweetened with sugar or thinned with milk. It is usually served at breakfast like cream of wheat or oatmeal. Elders are said to have drunk ''atole'' because it gave them energy. A mother who is nursing will drink ''atole'' to give her more milk.<ref name="Mushulá & Atole de Maiz">{{cite web |url=http://ambergriscaye.com/25years/mushala.html |title=Mushulá & Atole de Maiz, 25 YEARS AGO ON AMBERGRIS CAYE |first=Angel |last=Nuñez |access-date=2009-11-23 }}</ref>

The Puebloan peoples of New Mexico sometimes call ''atole'' ''chaquehue'' or ''chaquewa''.<ref name="El Palacio">{{cite magazine |last1=Alters |first1=Cheryl |last2=Jamison |first2=Bill |title=Tasting New Mexico: Breakfast Specialties |journal=El Palacio |date=Spring 2012 |url=https://www.elpalacio.org/2012/03/tasting-new-mexico/ |access-date=2023-09-16}}</ref>

The [[Ancestral Puebloans]] began to cultivate corn around 2000 BCE, and used advanced irrigation ditches as early as 205 CE. Later, during the time of [[Spanish colonization of the Americas|Spanish colonialization]], blue corn was irrigated by Moorish-influenced [[acequia]] systems. The Hopi plant blue corn seeds in bundles of several seeds to one hole, sometimes quite deep to reach ground water.<ref name="ENM">{{cite web |last1=Tawase-Garcia |first1=Cassidy A. |title=Love in a Cup: A Story of Blue Corn and Place |url=https://www.ediblenm.com/love-in-a-cup/ |website=Edible New Mexico |date=2023-02-08 |access-date=2023-09-16 }}</ref>

Atole porridge is called mush by the [[Navajo|Diné]], and includes the addition of juniper ash. It is called ''wataca'' by the [[Hopi]]. Atole flour is used to create Hopi [[Piki|piki bread]].<ref name="El Palacio" /><ref name="Blaser" />

==Cultural references==
The beverage is referenced in the [[Spanish language|Spanish]] [[idiom]] ''dar atole con el dedo'' ("to give ''atole'' with the thumb"), which means to placate with deception. It may originate from the idea of [[wet nurse]]s using ''atole'' on their thumbs to placate infants; alternatively, it may refer to the practice of distributing tamales and ''atole'' during periods of drought in [[pre-Columbian Mexico]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Por qué en México decimos "dar atole con el dedo" |url=https://www.infobae.com/america/mexico/2022/06/18/por-que-en-mexico-decimos-dar-atole-con-el-dedo/ |access-date=8 June 2024 |work=infobae |date=17 June 2022 |language=ES}}</ref>

==See also==
{{portal|Food}}
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* [[Avena (drink)]]
* [[Brose]]
* [[Chicha morada]]
* [[Horchata]]
* [[Gruel]]
* [[Pozol]]
* [[List of hot beverages]]
* [[List of maize dishes]]
* [[List of porridges]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{Commons category|Atole}}
{{Reflist}}
{{corn}}
{{Mexican cuisine}}

[[Category:Cuisine of the Southwestern United States]]
[[Category:Day of the Dead food]]
[[Category:Guatemalan cuisine]]
[[Category:Honduran cuisine]]
[[Category:Hot drinks]]
[[Category:Maize-based drinks]]
[[Category:Mesoamerican cuisine]]
[[Category:Mexican drinks]]
[[Category:Cuisine of New Mexico]]
[[Category:Nicaraguan cuisine]]
[[Category:Non-alcoholic drinks]]
[[Category:Porridges]]
[[Category:Salvadoran cuisine]]
[[Category:Street food in Mexico]]