No self-respecting raspa stand in South Texas would be complete without featuring a chamoyada on the menu — the sweet, sour, salty and chile-spiced shaved ice that is usually drenched with fresh lime juice and heavily garnished with more salty-sweet-acidic seasoning. First-timers just might pucker up and freak out over so many strong flavors in one Styrofoam cup, but snackers in the RGV are all about the chamoyada. The flavor of chamoy is an essential part of the South Texas flavor profile.
But where did this crazy spicy, electrically fruity snow cone flavoring come from? What is the story of chamoy and why do we love it so much?
The genesis of any food tradition goes back to the native land of the ingredient. The chamoy flavor is based on salted green stone fruits. Tracing back to the banks of the Yangtze River in China, the Prunus genus includes peaches, plums, cherries and almonds, which are usually referred to as stone fruits. If stone fruits originated in China, then credit for peach-based chamoy flavor is owed to the Chinese.
Sour peach and plum flavors are still enjoyed in China, Japan and the relatively nearby Pacific Islands of Hawaii, where shave ice dominates the snack scene. Known by the Chinese name of see mui, sour green stone fruits are sold in endless varieties that are salted, sugared, dried or soaked in syrup. One variety of see mui is li hing mui, which can be found in powdered form in most Asian markets or online. Translated in English as “traveling plum,” li hing mui was popularized by Chinese immigrants from Canton who brought their salty-sour-sweet stone fruit treats with them.
But once li hing mui arrived in Mexico, the logical progression of this complicated flavor was to add some heat. Chile flavor is an essential condiment in countless Mexican dishes and snacks, so of course a little picante flavor was added to li hing mui. It may have been born in China, but the addition of chile after its arrival in Mexico makes chamoy a New World original flavor.
Want to make it at home?
