What did Emiliano Zapata like to eat?

Emiliano Zapata, one of the most outstanding icons of the Mexican RevolutionHe not only enjoyed spending his free time in the fields and supporting his fellow farmers, he was also a great lover of Mexican food. It is very common to talk about his battles, the political conflicts he had to face or his great camaraderie with Pancho Villa, however, Little is said about his taste for gastronomy.

The favorite drinks of the also called Caudillo del Sur were coffee and atole, mainly corn and plumthe latter, according to statements by people close to Zapata, was one of the dishes that his wife used to prepare for him every morning. He also enjoyed that his concoctions were sweetened with piloncillo and made in a copper pot.

He regularly accompanied his breakfasts with bread or sometimes he preferred to taste gorditas with jocoque or cream. The author Martha Sánchez points out that, in terms of food, one of his favorite dishes was the pot mole with dough balls, although he also enjoyed foods such as tomato sauce with jumiles, cecina, longaniza tacos, mushrooms, dried meat, beans and like all good Mexicans, he liked to accompany his food with tortillas.

He also liked to put cheese and chili on his food. for desserts he preferred the sweet pumpkin or the sweet potato. It is also said that he used to eat watermelons because he planted them himself on his land in Anenecuilco, Morelos.

The same author explains that since childhood he was used to eating everything due to his work as a farmer, which began at a very early age. Over time, he got to know his tastes better and when he married Inés Alfaro Agilar, his first wife, she was the one who cooked for him and “spoiled him” by making his favorite stews.

Although his “vicious” side is not known, the man from Morelos enjoyed smoking cigars and preferred to drink cognac, it is even said that he had a peculiar taste for French cuisine. According to a document from the Chamber of Deputies, Another of Emiliano Zapata Salazar’s passions, apart from food and the countryside, were horses.

In fact, he realized that it was one of his favorite animals, because from a very young age he showed great interest in knowing everything about them and learning to ride them. One of his earliest exploits was when managed to control his mare named Papaya without any problemwhich had been a gift—with much effort—from his father. Back then, Emiliano was just an elementary school kid.

Over time he became a great horseman and became an expert in the arts of charrería. He liked it so much that, on one occasion, “when he made a good profit on a crop of watermelons, the money earned was used in a silver button for his charro suit”.

It should be noted that his virtues did not only stop there, since when he attended basic education at the Anenecuilco school, he stood out for his knowledge of Spanish, arithmetic and, above all, history.

This last talent began to develop thanks to the fact that one of his teachers, Emilio Vara, told him his anecdotes of when he faced, like his uncles, the conservatives and the army of the Second Mexican Empire.

Without a doubt, the life of the Caudillo del Sur stood out in more than one activity and his daily life was always full of particularities that led him to be a great figure in the history of Mexico.

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