Of all the food discoveries made across the ancient world, few are more impressive than the domestication and then nixtamlization of maize (corn) in the lands that would one day be called Mexico and Central America.

Mesoamerica is one of just three places where urban civilization evolved from scratch. Come listen, and be amazed how it happened.

Music for this episode performed by  Ricardo Lozano and Jorge Ramos.

Olmec Civilization – Ancient History Encyclopedia

Smithsonian – What We Know About the Earliest History of Chocolate

THE COMPLICATED EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY OF SPICY CHILI PEPPERS – Harvard.edu

Food Timeline – Aztec and Maya

1491 by Charles Mann

The Creation of Inequality: How Our Prehistoric Ancestors Set the Stage for Monarchy, Slavery, and Empire