Real Recipes From Real Home Cooks ®

fresco de chan or guatemalan strawberry chia water

a recipe by
Janin (MamiJ) Sayun
Hollister, CA

Chia seeds are called chan in Central America. This light beverage typically uses strawberry essence or flavor, but I listed strawberry syrup instead as it might be easier to find than the essence. If you do have access to it, then increase sugar to 1/2 cup and the essence to 6 tablespoons. It's a perfect companion to any Latin American dish, especially spicy ones.

prep time 1 Hr 10 Min
method No-Cook or Other

Ingredients For fresco de chan or guatemalan strawberry chia water

  • 4 Tbsp
    (heaping) chia seeds
  • 1 l
    water
  • 1/3 c
    sugar
  • 4 Tbsp
    strawberry syrup
  • 3
    limes, juice of
  • ice, for serving

How To Make fresco de chan or guatemalan strawberry chia water

  • 1
    Place the chia seeds and a 1 cup of water in a medium bowl. Mix with a spoon until seeds are dispersed in the water. Let sit in the refrigerator for 1 hour until seeds absorb the liquid and are plump.
  • 2
    Place the 1 liter of water in a pitcher and add the sugar, strawberry syrup and the juice of the 3 limes. Mix until sugar is dissolved. Add the hydrated chia seeds and mix again. Add ice and serve.
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