The real horchata is Valencian orxata

Valencian-style horchata has an unmatched exquisite taste. It is a sweet vegetable beverage based on tiger nuts typical of the summer. This is the milk recipe I give you below.

	Orxata drink

The precursor of orxata could be the medieval ordiat made with barley (ordi in Catalan) and almond milk. In the Libre de Sent Sovi we find three recipes for ordiat. One of them could very well be the origin of Valencian orxata.

Orxata de xufla is the complete Catalan name, xufla meaning tiger nut. Horchata de chufa is the Spanish name.

The best tigernuts are grown in L'Horta region in Valencia, particularly in Alboraia, the craddle of orxata and fartons, a sweet served with it. I hope you add this delighful drink recipe to your treasury vault of Mediterranean diet secrets.

It is also in the Valencian Country where, in the summer, the orxateries, or orxata parlors, serve the best horchata in the world. In Barcelona there are a few ice cream parlours where you can enjoy freshly made orxata valenciana too.

The horchata recipe is simple, you just have to take into account that you have to soak the tiger nuts overnight.

Homemade orxata keeps one day, two at the most in the refriferator. Thus, the horchata you find in supermarkets has little to do with the real tiger nut milk, because it contains lots of preservers. But if you want to buy industrial orxata anyway, choose the frozen one over the bottles, it tastes much better.

Ingredients for this horchata recipe

Yields 4 glasses

• 9 ounces or 1.1 cups (250 g) tiger nuts (chufas)
• 1 quart (1 l) good quality water
• ½ (125 g) sugar
• ½ cinnamon stick – optional
• A small piece lemon rind – optional

Orxata preparation method

Preparation time: 20 minutes plus 14 hours for soaking the tiger nuts
Cooking time: 0 minutes

1. Clean and rinse the tiger nuts very well. Rinse it under running tap water if necessary. Remove and discard the bad ones.


2. Soak them in plenty of cold water for 12 hours. Double check the tiger nuts that float on the surface because they are usually bad.


3. Drain them, rinse them again and check again if there are bad ones left.


4. Add the chufas and 1 glass of the water to a blender or foood processor and grind them.


5. Slowly add the rest of the water, mix well, and allow it to rest for 2 to 3 hours.


6. Sift through a cloth filter. Sieve it again if you deem it necessary. It should be free from any impurities.


7. Add the sugar and mix well. At this point you can add a small piece of cinnamon bark and lemon rind if you like it. This is optional and I'd advice you not to add cinnamon and lemon at least the first time you make horchata.


8. Now you have two options for serving horchata. The first one is refrigerating it and serving it cold as it is. The second one is icing it and serving it as an iced drink. Either way this drink recipe is specially refreshing and delicious.

Homemade Mediterranean drink Delightful nut drink