Nixtamalization
noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A process for the preparation of maize (corn) in which the grain is soaked and cooked in an alkaline solution, usually limewater, and hulled. uncountable
"Nixtamalization, a traditional Mexican process for making tortillas, consists of cooking maize grain in excess water and lime (calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)₂), at temperatures near boiling, followed by steeping."
Example
More examples"Nixtamalization, a traditional Mexican process for making tortillas, consists of cooking maize grain in excess water and lime (calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)₂), at temperatures near boiling, followed by steeping."
Etymology
From nixtamal + -ization.
More for "nixtamalization"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.