Central American Foodways — Safety Note

Comparison

⚠ DESCRIPTION, NOT INSTRUCTION. BITTER CASSAVA is toxic until correctly processed; the Garifuna ruguma technique for ereba is described and is not reproduced as a method. NIXTAMALIZATION uses caustic lime and is a skilled process. Raw and lightly-cured seafood, hand-gathered shellfish and reef fish carry documented risks including CIGUATERA, which cooking does not remove. Home-fermented chicha, unpasteurised cuajada and fresh cheese, and street-prepared food carry documented risks. ⚠ SEA TURTLE AND SOME GAME APPEAR IN THE HISTORICAL RECORD OF COASTAL FOODWAYS AND ARE NOW PROTECTED; they are recorded as history, not as current practice. Some plants in Indigenous practice are ritual or medicinal rather than food. Current national guidance governs.