The story is that cacao was a useful gift from the gods. The dark gods. The gods of the underworld.
To balance out the negativity of a gift from the dark gods, a gift from the light gods had to be included. Turn its use to an eschatological net-neutral, I suppose. The greatest gift from the light gods was, of course, corn.
And so, the earliest iterations of chocolate were, as best records show, a drink. Hot water mixed with cacoa, corn, vanilla, chiles, cinnamon, and a bunch of other who-knows-what that tended to be drank in the morning or during special ceremonies.
Funny thing about having been a religion major is that you start to learn that so very many of the dogmatic practices, the whole world round, to which every religious celebrant's adherence is expected...
It's generally rooted in practicality.
For example: When you start your day off with a shot of chocolate... you're likely to have a sudden burst of energy. But it will wear off quickly.
If only there was some sort of complex carbohydrate mixed in. Something that would break down more slowly and maintain your energy levels for longer as well as help keep the hunger away. Something like... oh... I dunno... corn?
Put this all in some water so you've got hydration covered, too.
And you've got pozol.
A drink that's still sold from carts all over the place.
I'm not gonna lie... it's a bit of a weird flavor. At first. But it definitely grows on you.
I've always been the sort of person that will try pretty much anything and rarely have I ever eaten or drank anything that I've said, "ILK, not doing that again!" (And I wasn't always vegan, either.) Honestly, I liked pozol from the first sip.
Which is why I couldn't be happier that if you get to Cenote Jailhouse at just the right time... the pozol guy shows up for the family who runs the farm.
But doesn't seem to mind vending to divers, too.
Try it sometime. It's good for you. And a gift from the gods.
Doesn't have to be at Jailhouse - try it in town, or wherever - though the ambience of a cenote pre-dive definitely helps.
(Edited to add: Not to be confused with pozole. Which is a soup. Usually chicken, but can be veganized easily. It is also delicious. Just watch out for that E depending on what you're in the mood to eat/drink.)