What is Chicha Beer? Simple Chicha Recipes to Try at Home

Chicha beer is a traditional Latin American beverage made from maize, with variations across regions. It has both fermented and non-fermented forms, with the former containing 1-3% alcohol. Historically, chicha was crafted by chewing maize to ferment it. Modern recipes include boiling the maize with spices like cinnamon and cloves. Chicha de jora is the alcoholic version, while chicha morada is non-alcoholic. This ancient drink is enjoyed for its cultural significance and unique flavors.

What is the History of Chicha?

Chicha is of Latin American descent, particularly emerging from The Amazonia and Andes regions. Traditionally, chicha production was a women’s task and the techniques of making it was passed down from different generations.

Chicha used to be a ceremonial drink that intoxicated the native people who inhabited the early settlements of Latin America. The craft of chicha making has come a long way over many centuries. To make chicha, people had to grind the maize into sticky cakes, this was done by chewing on the maize to reach the desired consistency.

Balls were formed from the sticky cakey maize and the ptyalin enzymes found in saliva broke down the maize starch to form fermentable sugars. These maize balls used to then be left out to dry, made into a porridge which was strained, boiled, and lastly fermented for about three to six days in large clay vessels prior to being enjoyed.

Is there Alcohol in Chicha?

Chicha de jora has alcohol, but a small percentage often between 1-3% volume. People often drink it in an active state of fermentation. Chicha has many variations from different Latin regions, and a chicha that is native to Peru known as Chicha morada, is known to be non-alcoholic as it is a non-fermented beverage.

How is Chicha Made?

Maize chicha is prepared by germinating the maize, extracting the sugars from the malt, boiling the wort, and then fermenting it in large clay vessels for several days. The chicha brewer would usually make large amounts of chicha by using many of the large vessels and arranging them in rows with fires in the middle, to reduce heat loss. The process of making chicha is similar to that of brewing malted barley beer.

Chicha morada, the non-alcoholic version of chicha, is made from ears of purple maize, which gives it an intense purple coloured liquid. The maize is boiled with cinnamon, pineapple, and cloves, which is then mixed with lemon and a desired amount of sugar.

What Are The Benefits Of Drinking Chicha?

Chicha is nowadays used as a beer during traditional festivals and rituals, and has been known to have some benefits such as the below:

• Can aid with weight loss
• Recommended for those suffering from diabetes
• Assists with relaxation
• Assists with lowering blood pressure
• Helps to prevent flu and colds
• Contains medical properties to protect against heart disease
• Works to eliminate toxins in the body

What Are The Regional Variations Of Chicha?

Bolivia

Bolivian chicha typically has alcohol and is most often made from maize in the highlands, though amaranth chicha is also a popular traditional version. In the lowlands, chicha made from plantain, banana and sweet cassava is common.

Amazonia

Chicha around the Amazon Basin is usually made from cassava, but cooking plantain is also known to be used.

Colombia

In the capital city of Bogota, chicha is prepared with maize, sugar and fermented for about six to eight days.

Chile

Chile has two versions of chicha, grape chicha which is produced in central Chile and apple chicha which is produced in southern Chile. Both of these chichas are alcoholic as there’s a fermentation procedure to make it.

El Salvador

El Salvadorean chicha is made using panela, maize and pineapple but is also used in other traditional dishes such as Gallo en Chincha.

Ecuador

Ecuador hosts an annual chicha beer festival called Yamor which includes parades, bands, fireworks, and chicha sampling.

Nicaragua

Nicaragua has a chicha known as chicha de maiz, which is an unfermented drink often flavoured with vanilla or banana.

Honduras

In Honduras, a chicha made from minia, yuca and yuca tamales was used long ago as a drink during sacred rituals.

Venezuela

Venezuelan chicha de arroz contains no alcohol and is made from milk, boiled rice, and sugar. They usually serve it sweet with condensed milk and ground cinnamon toppings.

Peru

In the past, corn was considered as a sacred crop in Peru and thus chicha was considered a valuable drink that used to be drunk in high quantities after harvesting work. It was also offered to gods and ancestors.

Panama

In Panama, Batido is their chicha version known as a fruit drink as its unfermented and chicha fuerte refers to the fermented maize drink often enjoyed on Holy or special days.

What Does Chicha Taste Like?

Chicha de jora can vary in taste since it has a number of variations depending on which Latin region it was made in, however, the general appearance is that of a pale straw colour and slightly milky with a sour aftertaste, likened to that of a hard apple cider.

Best Simple Recipes of Chicha to Try at Home

Chicha Venezolano

Chicha Venezolano is a traditional sweet and creamy non-alcoholic rice drink native to Venezuela, try making this simple recipe at home.

Ingredients

• 1 cup rice
• 1 cinnamon stick
• Cinnamon powder
• 5 cups of water
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup of condensed milk + ¼ cup used to garnish
• 2 cups of whole milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla essence
• Crushed ice

Directions

1. Wash the rice well and rinse until the water runs clear.
2. In a medium saucepan, mix the rice water, a pinch of salt and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to low while cooking for about 30-40 minutes until the rice becomes extremely soft. Remove from the heat allow and the mixture to cool down and discard the cinnamon stick.
3. Using a blender or a Vitamix, combine the whole milk, condensed milk, and vanilla essence with the rice mixture.
4. Serve in a glass with the crushed ice, add a little condensed milk using a squirt bottle and dust the top with cinnamon powder.

Chicha de jora

Chicha de jora is made by germinating the corn, boiling it, and leaving it to ferment for a few days. Here’s the recipe below for this traditional beverage.

Ingredients

• 3 litres of water
• 1 kg of jora corn (malted corn)
• ½ kg of brown sugar
• ½ cake chancaca (an unrefined brown sugar)

Directions

1. Soak the jora corn for 30 minutes in warm water, then adjust the water and boil it for another 30 minutes.
2. Strain the jora corn, and cook for eight hours while stirring continuously in 3 litres of water over low heat.
3. While boiling, the jora shouldn’t decrease in thickness. Warm water should be slowly added to keep the amount stable.
4. Stir in the chancaca and sugar until both dissolve, then set aside and leave to cool.
   Fill clay pots with chicha and cover them with tamis or cheesecloth that will enable air to pass through.
5. Leave the chicha to ferment for eight days, then trim the foam, strain the sediments and sweeten to taste.
   Serve and enjoy your chicha.

Chicha morada

Chicha morada is a non-fermented chicha that is made from the ears of purple maize which is boiled with sugar, cloves, and cinnamon. If you want to learn how to make it, here’s the recipe.

Ingredients

• 450 grams dried Peruvian purple corn on the cob (roughly 4 medium ears)
• 4 litres of water
• 1 large stick of cinnamon
• 6 whole cloves
• ½ cup of white sugar
• 3 green or yellow apples or crisp pears
• 4 key limes

Directions

1. Rinse the corn and place in a large pot with water, cloves, and cinnamon. Place the pot on high heat and once the water reaches a boiling point, reduce to medium-low and allow to simmer for about 50 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Strain liquids through a fine strainer into a pitcher and set aside the solids (do not discard them). Add sugar to the liquid and stir until thoroughly dissolved. Taste and add sugar as desired.
3. Chill the chicha and before serving, chop apples or pears into tiny cubes and juice the limes. Add diced fruit to the chicha pitcher and stir.
4. Serve with ice and enjoy!

What Are The Most Popular Or Best Chicha Brands To Try In The World?

A brewery known as Dogfish head reproduced the traditional chicha hybrid to commercialize it. In it are purple Peruvian corn, malted barley, and malted corn. It is brewed by boiling the wort for full sterilization, chilled and then blended with strawberries. It is then fermented with unique blends of yeast strains. It has a 3.1% ABV with a hazy pale colour, included are aromas of spice and fruits, flavour consists of fruity, complex, and refreshing notes with a dry mouthfeel finish.

What Are The Best Foods To Pair With Chicha?

Though non-alcoholic, chicha morada’s deep purple colour is alluring to many. The taste is a subtle sweetness with hints of the purple corn blended with various spices and fruity notes. The beverage pairs well with various cheeses such as halloumi, salty gouda, cheddar, and some strong blues.
Chicha de jora, the alcoholic version is refreshing especially on hot days and can pair with almost any meal. Its tangy flavour works especially well with savoury dishes such as barbecues and grilled meat.

Today, chicha is still consumed at chicharias, which are chicha bars all throughout Central and South America. Depending on the region, it is produced in a number of varieties. Chicha de jora is the fermented and alcoholic version made from germinated maize and chicha morada is a non-alcoholic and non-fermented beverage made from boiling purple corn.

The history of chicha dates back to centuries ago when traditionally, women produced it by using their saliva to chew on the maize and fermenting the contents for a few days. Malted maize has replaced the salivated maize practice of producing traditional chicha.

If you want to immerse yourself in the rich culture of Latin American history and culture, try these popular beverages. You may just love them!