Spanish-Style Tiger Nut Horchata Recipe

For the smartie pants among you, let me explain what on Earth Horchata is. Horchata was originally made in North Africa from soaked, ground and sweetened tiger nuts (Cyperus esculentus). This form of horchata is now properly called horchata de chufa or, in West African countries such as Nigeria and Mali, kunnu aya. It spread to Iberia (now Spain) with the Muslim conquest, prior to 1000CE.

And trust me, it hasn’t left Spain until today. Spaniards are crazy for Horchata and judging from the stuff they sell at the supermarket, I’m yet to fall in love with Horchata.

But, I was willing to give Horchata another chance. But this time, it had to come from my own blender.

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Spanish-Style Tiger Nut Horchata Recipe

Tigernut horchata, also known as tigernut milk or horchata de chufa, is regaining popularity outside of Spain. And that's not only because of its numerous health benefits. It's also delicious!

Prep Time5 mins

Soaking Time1 d

Total Time1 d 5 mins

Course: beverage

Cuisine: Spanish

Keyword: plant-based milk

Servings: 2 cups

Ingredients

• 1 cup tigernuts rehydrated
• 2 cup water filtered, boiled and cooled down
• 3 dried apricots
• 1 dash ground cinnamon optional

Instructions

• To rehydrate the tigernuts, let them soak for a minimum of 24 hours in enough water to more than completely cover them. Change the water several times throughout the process to get rid of any impurities.
  
  
• Once rehydrated, they should plump up and their volume will grow slightly. 
  
  
• Using a high-speed blender, begin to blend the tigenuts with half of the water and the apricots until they have formed a white paste.
  
  
• Strain the liquid through a nutbag into another container and add the tigernut paste back into your blending container.
  
  
• Add in the rest of the water and continue to blend for another minute or so.
  
  
• Strain the liquid out once more, this time pressing hard against it with a spoon (Or squeezing it with your hands) to try to get out any remaining liquid.
  
  
• The liquid that you have strained from the tigernuts is the tigernut horchata or tigernut milk. You can top it with a bit of cinnamon (optional).
  
  
• Serve immediately. Homemade tigernut horchata will tend to separate and doesn't keep fresh for very long.