Chilcuague is the root of Heliopsis longipes, a perennial herb in the daisy family that is endemic to the Sierra Gorda and Sierra Álvarez, a mountainous region of central Mexico spanning Querétaro, Guanajuato and San Luis Potosí. It grows nowhere else.
The name comes from the Nahuatl chilcoatl: chil for spicy, coatl for snake, after the twisting shape of the root. It is also known regionally as chilcuán, pelitre, Aztec root and golden root.
What it does in the mouth
Chilcuague is best known for its sensory character. Contact with the mouth produces a bright tingling that spreads across the tongue, along with a marked increase in saliva flow. The effect is immediate and unmistakable, and it is the reason the root has been valued for generations.
The compound responsible is affinin, an alkamide first isolated from the root in 1945. In Heliopsis longipes, affinin is concentrated in the roots rather than the leaves or flowers, which is why the root, and only the root, is the part that is harvested.
How it has been used
In central Mexico the root has long been used as a culinary spice, valued for a pungency similar to chilli, and added to sauces and traditional dishes. That everyday, food-first relationship with the plant is the tradition Tonalli draws on.
Tonalli Chilcuague
We produce a 30ml oral spray in two expressions: Golden Root for the pure character of the plant, and Mandarin Honey for a softer finish. Both use the root itself rather than a synthesised substitute, sourced from Guanajuato.