Food Nutrition in Ancient Aztec

The majority of Aztecs consumed beans and corn on a daily basis. They gained protein through eating insects, including ants and grasshoppers, and occasionally worms. An average Aztec meal consisted of between two and three tortillas, along with a side of beans. They ate twice daily, in the morning and then again in the afternoon. Gruel made out of the grain amaranth was also a regular part of their diet, mostly made at night for a quick and easy meal. Nutritionally speaking, Aztecs generally didn't receive a lot of oil or fat in their diets.

Wealthy Aztecs enjoyed a much broader menu than the rest. Tomatoes, fruit and meat were all foods available to privileged members of the society. The Aztec emperor Montezuma II was believed to have as many as 30 separate dishes for every meal he ate, with luxurious foods such as roasted turkey, green plums, lobster, crab, turtle, frog, fish and quail. Other meats the Aztecs dined on were owls, deer, turkey, duck, lizards, parrots and eagles. Their vegetable favorites included artichokes, squashes, leeks, garlic, onions and watercress.

The Aztecs relied heavily on corn for their meals, and even had a technique called "nixtamalization" to increase its nutritional value. The technique involved immersing corn in water and then cooking it in a lime mixture. Nixtamalization transformed niacin and made it more efficient for the body to digest. When Aztecs ate this type of corn in conjunction with beans, they received whole proteins, and therefore suitable levels of amino acids.

Chili peppers were a common element in many Aztec meals, providing vitamin A, niacin, riboflavin and iron. The Aztecs also regularly dined on a grain they referred to as "chia." Chia contained phosphorus and calcium. Nowadays, chia is thought to possibly be helpful for protecting people against medical ailments such as diabetes and heart disease.