Cahuamanta facts for kids
Caguamanta is a special seafood dish from Mexico. It's usually a warm soup made with manta ray and shrimp, along with different vegetables. You can also enjoy it served in tacos. When you drink just the broth (the soup liquid) by itself, it's called bichi. This word comes from the Yaqui language and means "naked" or "plain."
This dish originally used sea turtle (called "caguama" in Spanish) as its main ingredient. However, sea turtles are now on the endangered species list, which means there are very few left in the wild. Because of this, hunting them is now against the law. So, chefs started using manta ray and shrimp instead, making them the main ingredients of Caguamanta today.
The first place where Caguamanta was served is believed to be the city of Los Mochis, located in the state of Sinaloa, Mexico.
Where Caguamanta Began
People have different ideas about where Caguamanta first came from. One popular idea, shared by chef Muñoz Zurita in his famous book about Mexican food, is that Caguamanta started in Ciudad Obregón. This city is in the southern part of the state of Sonora, and it might have been created there around the late 1800s. From Sonora, this tasty dish quickly became popular in other cities, especially in the northern part of Sinaloa, like Los Mochis and Mazatlán.
Regional Styles of Caguamanta
There's a small difference between the Caguamanta made in Sinaloa and the one made in Sonora. The Sinaloan style almost always includes shrimp as a key ingredient. However, the Sonoran style doesn't always add shrimp.
Other Origin Theories
Another idea about Caguamanta's origin points to Santa Rosalía, a town in Baja California Sur. No matter where it truly began, Caguamanta has become very popular in many coastal areas of Mexico. You can find it enjoyed in places like Tijuana, other parts of the Baja California peninsula, and even along the coasts of Nayarit and Jalisco.
See also
In Spanish: Cahuamanta para niños
