Masa

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For other uses, see Masa (disambiguation).

Masa is Spanish for dough, but in Mexico it sometimes refers to cornmeal dough (masa de maíz in Spanish). It is used for making tortillas, tamales, pupusas, arepas and many other Latin American dishes. The dried and powdered form is called masa harina; it is reconstituted with water.

Masa trigo is Spanish for wheat flour dough. It is also used for making tortillas and other breads and pastries.

Masa nixtamalera is nixtamalized maize dough. It is nutritionally superior to cornmeal dough because the limewater adds calcium to the dough and makes the niacin in the cornmeal nutritionally available. ^[1] In Central American and Mexican cuisine, masa nixtamalera is cooked with water and milk to make a thick, gruel-like beverage called atole. When made with chocolate and sugar, it becomes atole de chocolate. Adding anise and piloncillo to this mix creates Champurrado, a popular breakfast drink.