“Samalamig!”
The sound and vision that this word conjures still excite our ears and eyes.
The cold, colorful drinks in huge plastic jugs, with large chunks of ice, ladled on to plastic cups, bring back happy childhood memories—alongside tasty thoughts of fishball carts, fluffy cotton candy and multicolored balloons.
This memory was certainly triggered by the excruciating summer heat and the morning I spent with Mexican food expert Estela Lomeli Blanco.
La señora has delighted me time and again with her authentic fare that she always pairs with the Mexican version of samalamig.
Aguas Frescas (or “fresh water”)—also known as Aguas de Sabor or Aguas de Frutas Naturales—are flavored drinks lightly sweetened, served with ice cubes.
Not to be mistaken with juice (jugos) that has a strong fruit-concentrate taste, aguas are made by diluting fruit with water, then mixed or blended.
In Mexico, Blanco said, people enjoy their meals with pitchers of agua fresca. “I make them every day in my house. It can be made out of anything you want. Anything you fancy, really. You can even combine fruits.”
Agua fresca also goes well with vegetables (usually cucumber with a hint of lemon and a bit of celery), hibiscus flowers, seeds (such as chia), nuts, rice and cereals (barley).
Popular agua variants are piña, hibiscus, horchata (rice water), guyabano and tamarind.
In Mexico, aguas are found everywhere. Where they sell tacos, you will surely find a selection of aguas, said Blanco.
‘Licuado’
For breakfast, Blanco adds milk to her aguas. When milk is splashed, the drink is called licuado.
The more common ingredients that make delicious licuados are apples, strawberries, chico, bananas and mixed berries.
Walnuts and pecans can also be added. Squash seeds and toasted coconuts are likewise preferred ingredients to blend into the beverage. Doing so makes it richer, with a creamier texture.
The aguas and licuados are sweetened with either sugar, agave syrup or honey.
Do not, however, make it too sweet. The whole idea is to have a beverage that is easy to drink while keeping its taste as close to the natural fruit (or the source of flavoring) as possible.
It’s interesting to note that every household in Mexico, big or small, has a blender, said Blanco. It is used to make agua fresca and to purée many sauces.
Here are Blanco’s must-try recipes. The aguas are guaranteed to keep you refreshed and to tastily tide you through this very hot summer.
Agua de Horchata
1 cup uncooked rice (any type will do), cleaned and washed
2 liters of water
Sugar to taste, or 1 can of condensed milk to sweeten
Cinnamon, to taste
Soak rice at least 4 hours in water. Drain.
Transfer soaked rice to a blender. Add 2 l of water. Blend until smooth.
Sweeten with sugar or, for a richer horchata, with condensed milk. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
Transfer to a pitcher. Chill.
Pour into a glass. Add ice cubes. Serve.
Mango
4 mangoes, ripe and peeled (or substitute mangoes with 1 solo papaya or guyabano peeled and seeded)
2 l water
Sugar, to taste
Combine and blend. Sweeten to taste. Transfer to a pitcher. Chill. Pour into a glass. Add ice cubes.
Citrus
1 c citrus juice of choice (lemon, lime, kalamansi) or the juice from 1 kilo of orange or dalandan
2 l water
Sugar, to taste
Optional: 2 aloe vera leaves, peeled and chopped
Optional: 1 tablespoon chia seeds
Combine juice, water and sugar. Add chopped aloe vera and chia seeds. Chill.
Garnish with thinly sliced fruit (the same fruit as the fruit juice used for the recipe).
Tamarind
200 grams of ripe tamarind
2 c water
2 l water
Sugar, to taste
Bring 2 c water to a boil.
Turn off the fire; add tamarind to the hot water. Let cool.
Mash to separate pulp from seeds. Strain.
Add 2 l water. Sweeten to taste. Serve chilled with ice
Hibiscus
1 c (culinary grade) hibiscus flowers
2 c water
2 l water
Sugar, to taste
Bring 2 c of water to a boil.
Turn off the fire; steep the hibiscus for 10 minutes. Strain.
Add 2 l water to the strained hibiscus water.
Sweeten. Serve cold with ice.
Ube or Taro
1 c cooked and mashed ube or taro
2 l water
Sugar
Combine and blend. Sweeten. Serve chilled with ice
Berries
2 c berries of choice (substitute with 2 c ripe guava, seeds removed and peeled)
2 l water
Sugar
Follow ube instructions.
Melon
1/2 k melon, seeds removed and peeled
2 l water
Sugar
Follow ube instructions.
Watermelon
1 k watermelon, peeled, seeds removed
1 l water
Sugar
Follow ube instructions.
Banana
6-8 bananas
2 l water
1/4 c evaporated milk
Sugar
Cinnamon, for garnish
Follow ube instructions. Sprinkle with cinnamon
Cucumber
1/2 k cucumbers, unpeeled, seeds removed
1/4 c kalamansi juice
2 l water
Sugar
Combine and blend. Strain. Sweeten. Chill. Serve with ice.
Piña
1 k pineapple
2 l water
Sugar
Follow cucumber instructions.
Estela Blanco can cook for you. Call 0916-7452073 and have her prepare an authentic Mexican fare. I love her tacos and stews, served with guacamole and chipotle salsa.