Horchata de Chufa
Horchata de chufa is a milky beverage made from Superfood Chufa.
Its origins can be traced back to Spain where the Horchata is widely consumed by locals as a chilled summer drink to quench their thirst under the sweltering summer sun.
The Horchata is usually eaten together with “Fartons” – a lightly sweetened, soft and light, breadstick designed to have the right texture suitable for dipping in Horchata.
The legend behind the name of the drink is an interesting one.
It was said that a young girl once offered a sweet, white drink to the King of Aragon, Jaime I. "What is that?" he asked the young girl, pleasantly surprised by its flavour. "It's tigernut milk" she responded, to which he replied "Aixo no es llet, aixo es or xata" ("That is not milk, that is gold, my pretty one"). Many attribute the word 'horchata' to this appraisal of the drink by the King.
King Jaime I was not the only one to be fascinated by the drink, we were very much too captivated by it.
Horchata de chufa is a milky beverage made from Superfood Chufa.
Its origins can be traced back to Spain where the Horchata is widely consumed by locals as a chilled summer drink to quench their thirst under the sweltering summer sun.
The Horchata is usually eaten together with “Fartons” – a lightly sweetened, soft and light, breadstick designed to have the right texture suitable for dipping in Horchata.
The legend behind the name of the drink is an interesting one.
It was said that a young girl once offered a sweet, white drink to the King of Aragon, Jaime I. "What is that?" he asked the young girl, pleasantly surprised by its flavour. "It's tigernut milk" she responded, to which he replied "Aixo no es llet, aixo es or xata" ("That is not milk, that is gold, my pretty one"). Many attribute the word 'horchata' to this appraisal of the drink by the King.
King Jaime I was not the only one to be fascinated by the drink, we were very much too captivated by it.
BACKGROUND OF CHUFA
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HOW TO FARM CHUFA ?
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HOW TO FARM CHUFA ?
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Preparation of Fields•Soil used to cultivate chufas is loose and powdery so equipment used must be lightweight to avoid compacting the soil;
•Fertile land and mild climate in Valencia Spain is perfect for the growth of high quality chufas •Encourage healthy and natural growth of chufas |
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Seeding•Planted between April to May
•Soil humidity must be controlled at all times; •Careful control of irrigation as a lot of water is required throughout the growing process to ensure high quality of chufas |
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Harvesting•Nov through to Feb
•Stop irrigation; plants left to dry •The part of the plant growing above ground is burnt off •Ashes & Debris removed •Specially designed combined harvester to separate the chufas from the soil |
Cleaning & Washing•Quality control to ensure skin is clean and any roots
•Four phase cleaning •Separate chufas from the earth •Separate thick stones •Remove any hair on the chufas •Soaking and pass through various shafts and showers to ensure all gravel are removed and chufas are properly cleaned |
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Drying•Humidity reduce from 50% to 11%
•Slow process over 3 to 6 months •Dried in huge buildings created specifically for drying chufas –meticulous managing air flow to monitor humidity •Traditional way of drying and airing chufas over centuries • Continuously and carefully turned over manually daily to allow chufas to attain uniform drying |
Selection•Sorting to eliminate impurities and bad undersized chufas
•Manual selection and screened through by chufa specialists to ensure consistency and only good chufas will be picked and packed |