Reflections, challenges, and opportunities in the significance of the Gastronomic Heritage of the Rarámuri Community

Opportunities in the Gastronomic Heritage of the Rarámuri Community

  • Samantha Aranda Quiroga Universidad Vizcaya de las Américas
Keywords: Raramuri, Tarahumara, Chihuahua, tesguino, korima, gastronomic heritage

Abstract

The Rarámuri, or Tarahumara, are an ethnic group from the Sierra Madre Occidental in Chihuahua, Mexico, known for their traditions and clothing; their diet was based on corn, pinole, local vegetables (potatoes, zucchini, chiltepín, pinto beans), and game. However, their dietary habits underwent drastic changes due to social, economic, cultural, and climatic factors, forcing them to migrate to the cities of Chihuahua and Ciudad Juárez. Given this situation, this research aims to analyze the causes of the loss of their culinary culture and the issues affecting their quality of life. The objective is to explore tourism proposals linked to the Rarámuri culinary heritage that can generate sustainable alternatives to improve the socioeconomic conditions of their communities

References

Aguilera, S. (2023). Plant communication among the Ralámuli people: Dreams, songs, iconography, and the interconnected fabric. Anthropol. Conscious, 34(2), 508-526.
Armendáriz, A. G. M., Fuentes, G. Á., Housni, F. E., & Cervantes, V. G. A. (2025). Prácticas alimentarias en una comunidad rarámuri de la Sierra de Chihuahua, México. Anthropol. Food, S18.
Cárdenas-Carrión, Blanca María. (2014). Construcciones culturales del sabor: comida Rarámuri. Anales De Antropología 48 (1): 33-57.
Creel. https://www.creelsierratarahumara.com/profile/contacto/profile (consultado 20 de junio de 2026).
Diaz, Selene, & Esquivel García, Paul E.. (2026). I’m Not an India, I’m a Tarahumara: Images and Narratives by Rarámuri people in Ciudad Juárez. Frontera Norte, 38, e2433.
Fournier-García, P and Mondragón-Barrios, L. (2012). Las bebidas mexicanas. Pulque, mezcal y tesgüino. Arqueología Mexicana, 114, 53-59.
Indigenousmexico. https://www.indigenousmexico.org/articles/indigenous-chihuahua-a-war-zone-for-three-centuries-2 (consultado 2 de junio de 2026).
Instituto Nacional de los Pueblos Indígenas. https://www.gob.mx/inpi/articulos/etnografia-del-pueblo-tarahumara-raramuri (consultado 5 de junio de 2026).
Lieberman, D. E., Mahaffey, M., Quimare, S. C., Holowka, N. B., Wallace, I. J., Baggish, A. L., Ijäs, M., Levi, J. M., Liebenberg, L., Martin, D. Q., Morneau, J., Cortina, A. P. P., Willems, C., & Wyndham, F. S. (2020). Running in Tarahumara (Rarámuri) Culture: Persistence Hunting, Footracing, Dancing, Work, and the Fallacy of the Athletic Savage. Curr. Anthropol., 61(3), 356–379.
Martínez-Armendáriz, A. G., Álvarez Fuentes, G., and Ezzahra-Housni, F. and Virginia Gabriela Aguilera Cervantes, V. G. (2025). Prácticas alimentarias en una comunidad rarámuri de la Sierra de Chihuahua, México. Anthropol. Food, S18.
Moreno-Calles, A.I. Casas, A. Rivero-Romero, A.D. Romero-Bautista, Y.A. Rangel-Landa, S. Fisher-Ortíz, R.A. Álvarado-Ramos, F. Vallejo-Ramos, M & Santos-Fita, D. (2016). Ethnoagroforestry: integration of biocultural diversity for food sovereignty in Mexico. J Ethnobiol. Ethnomed., 12, 54.
Piedepagina. https://piedepagina.mx/farm-to-table-a-celebration-of-raramuri-gastronomy/ (consultado 20 de junio de 2026).
Sabores de Méxicoy el Mundo. https://lossaboresdemexico.com/comida-raramuri/ (consultado 1 de julio de 2026).
Scholar archive. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/1309 (consultado 14 de junio de 2026).
World cultures. https://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/cultures/nu33/doc (consultado 25 de mayo de 2026).
Published
2026-09-22
How to Cite
Aranda Quiroga, S. (2026, September 22). Reflections, challenges, and opportunities in the significance of the Gastronomic Heritage of the Rarámuri Community. Journal of Tourism and Heritage Research, 9(3), 101-111. Retrieved from https://jthr.es/index.php/journal/article/view/814