Alguashte is a seasoning typical of Salvadoran cuisine made from ground

pepitas A pumpkin seed, also known in North America as a pepita (from the Mexican es, pepita de calabaza, "little seed of squash"), is the edible seed of a pumpkin or certain other cultivars of squash. The seeds are typically flat and asymmetrically ...

(pumpkin seeds), and is used on both sweet or savoury meals. Simple to make; it is often prepared at home, however it can also be purchased pre-packaged as well as from street vendors often as an addition to a meal or snack. It is added to fruits such as unripe

mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in Sout ...

, as well as food dishes such as shuco and chicken.

Etymology

Alhuashte: from the

Nahuatl Nahuatl (; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahua peoples, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have small ...

AYU, juice; JUASHTI, seeds. Adobo prepared from pumpkin seeds.

History

While its origin is not known, alguashte likely is of Mayan origins as pepitas have been consumed in

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area in southern North America and most of Central America. It extends from approximately central Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica. W ...

for several centuries.

Notes

Salvadoran cuisine Condiments {{ElSalvador-cuisine-stub