Mexican cuisine boasts some very bizarre stories – here are a few remarkable things you probably never knew about your favourite food!

  1. Scientists have found connections between capsaicin (the ingredient that makes chillies hot) and a component of tarantula venom.
  2. October 21 is the International Day of the Nacho – a festival most enthusiastically celebrated in the far northern town of Piedras Negras.
  3. Nachos were invented by Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Anaya in 1943, and although he passed away in the 1970s, his son continues to serve as a judge in the annual nacho competition.
  4. The origins of the deep fried burrito-like meal, the ‘chimichanga’, continue to be the subject of much debate. According to one theory it was invented by accident in 1922, when a chef accidentally dropped a pastry into a deep-fat fryer. She began to utter a Spanish swear word beginning "chi...", but quickly stopped herself and instead exclaimed ‘chimichanga!’, the Spanish equivalent of ‘thingamajig’.
  5. Norway consumes more Mexican food than any other European country. Contrary to popular belief, the seeds are not the hottest part of a chilli. Rather, the greatest heat is found in the capsaicin oil, which is found in the membranes and near the stems of chilli plants.
  6. A typical Mexican family of four consumes more than two pounds of tortillas every day.  Upon arrival in Mexico, some early Spanish priests, aware of the passion people had for chillies and unsure of its powers, assumed they were aphrodisiacs and in their sermons warned against consumption of food that was ‘as hot as hell’s brimstone’.
  7. Eating chillies is addictive. When capsaicin comes in contact with the nerves in your mouth, pain signals are sent to the brain. Subsequently, the brain releases endorphins, natural painkillers, that create a feeling of well-being. Indian tribes strung chillies together and tied them to their canoes to ward off evil spirits they believed might be lurking in the water.
  8. Honey has always been more a big part of Maya culture – used in cooking, in alcoholic drinks, and even as an antibiotic. The Maya people of the Yucatan have practised bee-keeping for thousands of years. The ancient Maya considered the bee to be a connection to the spirit world, given to them by the god of bees and honey, Ah-Muzen-Cab.
  9. Recent research by the U.S. Department of Agriculture discovered that Americans are now eating four times as much Mexican food than they were 20 years ago. Salsa now outsells ketchup as the most popular condiment in the home of hamburgers.