My diet as a Mexican: tortillas. For me (as for many Mexicans), my diet is based on maize products. One of the most popular being the tortilla. There are many different kinds of tortillas but all of them are made through the same process: The maize is nixtamalized—a process that consists of boiling the maize in limewater or adding calcium oxide (CaO). The maize is milled using a modern mill or an ancient item called a "metate". The milled maize is mixed until a paste is formed. Using the paste, spheres are formed to be approximately the size of a golf ball. At home, the tortillas are made by squashing the spheres between both hands until the tortillas are thin and circular shaped (2-3mm), or they are squashed using a machine that allows them to get thinner and into circular shaped tortillas (1-2mm). Finally, the tortillas are cooked over a pan for a few seconds, then it is turned over for another few seconds in order to cook them on both sides. The average amount of tortillas that I eat is 9 per day, usually 3 each meal. There are many colors of tortillas, but the most popular are the white, yellow, and blue. Also, there are different sizes of tortillas depending on the food and how they are going to be used. In Mexico, the average cost for a kilogram of tortillas is 20 pesos. The tortillas are rolled to be eaten as part of the food if a fork or spoon is used (no sé que quieres decir aquí pero suena un poco extraño), otherwise it's eaten in small pieces. However, in both cases, it is eaten hot. I can't imagine how my food would be without tortillas! I'm proud to be a Mexican.