CANADIAN CORN TORTILLAS, EH?

There aren't many places to buy traditional nixtamalized corn tortillas in Canada, unless you're lucky enough to live in Victoria, BC

Beef Barbacoa Tacos with nixtamalized corn tortillas at MAiiZ in Victoria

By CINDA CHAVICH

If you’re looking for a real Canadian-made corn tortilla — literally sourced in BC from the ground up — look no further than the MAiiZ Nixtamal tortillas made right here in Victoria.

Chef Israel Alvarez Molina opened his MAiiZ Nixtamal Eatery and Tortilleria in Chinatown barely five years ago and has been wowing locals with his authentic Mexican street food ever since.

His tortillas are made from scratch, using whole organic dent corn grown in BC and the traditional nixtamalization process, an ancient Mesoamerican technique that releases the nutrients in the corn and makes it easier to digest.

You might have seen MAiiZ tortillas in local supermarkets or mentioned on the menus of top city restaurants, but his tidy little production facility and restaurant downtown on Fisgard Street is tortilla central, the place where you can learn all about nixtamalized corn and taste the difference it makes in his tacos, tamales and other authentic Mexican foods.

There is only one MAiiZ Nixtamal location — a shop and eatery in the heart of Victoria's historic Chinatown

WHY NIXTAMAL TORTILLAS?

The nixtamalization process — cooking and soaking dried corn in an alkaline (slaked lime) solution before grinding it — was first developed by ancient Mayan and Aztec civilizations, and that's the tradition that Alvarez Molina is reviving at MAiiZ Nixtamal today.

Like the artisan breads from bakers who mill whole grains for their loaves, he says grinding whole organic corn is the healthy way to make corn tortillas with the finest flavour, aroma and texture.

Toothsome yet pliable, they’re robust enough to hold fillings for his tender beef barbacoa or chicken tinga tacos, or to layer with grilled cactus and local chanterelle mushrooms in cheesy chilaquiles. The nixtamalized corn is also the base for the other authentic Mexican fare on Alvarez Molina’s menu, from steamy tamales and enchiladas, to hearty bowls of pozole and tortilla soup, sweet corn cakes and churros.

MAiiZ enchiladas with salsa verde

The Mexican-born chef began to explore nixtamalization when he came to Victoria in 2019, introducing locals to traditional corn tortillas and tacos at The Breakwater Grill.

It took a lot of time and effort to build his own business, acquiring the equipment and finding a source of local dent corn that he needed to make high quality artisan tortillas.

And though the nixtamalization process is labour intensive, Alvarez Molina knew that it was the only way to create the most delicious and natural corn masa (dough) — the base for all of the tasty corn dishes on the menu at his small restaurant and production facility in downtown Victoria.

Chef Alvarez Molina started his nixtamalization journey several years ago in Victoria, making tortillas by hand

A tasting of the modern nixtamal tacos available at MAiiZ today

CORN TO MASA

It was early Mayan and Aztec civilizations that developed nixtamalization, the term derived from the Nahuatl words "nextli" meaning "lime ashes" and "tamalli" (corn dough).

They discovered that boiling dried corn in an alkaline solution (using wood ash or lime) before grinding it for their masa (dough) made it more nutritious — the technique softening the hull and releasing the niacin (vitamin B3), iron, and protein that's hard for the body to absorb from raw corn.

Diego Rivera's famous fresco in the National Palace in Mexico City, details early Mesoamerican life and all of the foods with roots in Mexico, including maize (corn), still a staple crop and grain for making masa and tortillas.

Corn is sacred in Mesoamerican culture — a staple food that's considered a “gift from the gods" — and growing the many landrace corn varieties that evolved in the region has allowed indigenous societies to flourish there for millennia.

But with the rise of modern agriculture, mass production and processed corn flour (masa harina) — what Alvarez Molino likens to the instant mashed potatoes of the tortilla world — even in Mexico, the kind of tortillas he makes from scratch here, using whole kernel dried dent corn, have become a rarity.

In recent years, Mexicans have been vocal about protecting their native (lancrace) varietals of corn from contamination, pushing back against the GM (genetically modified) American corn flooding the Mexican market. Mexico recently passed legislation to ban the planting of GM corn (which is engineered to resist insects and tolerate being sprayed with glyphosate herbicides like Roundup), but has been unsuccessful in restricting imports of American GM corn due to free trade agreements.

So having an artisan tortilla producer here in tiny Victoria, producing organic corn tortillas from scratch, is a real gift.

At MAiiZ, Alvarez Molino starts with certified organic corn from Armstrong, BC, to make tortillas that are “Made in Canada” on every level. His tortilleria also has gluten free certification, so all of the MAiiZ corn products are safe for celiacs, too.

Israel Alvarez Molina at work in his MAiiZ tortilleria and eatery in downtown Victoria

CANADIAN TO THE CORE

Alvarez Molina has grown his tortilla business here over the last six years, with MAiiZ nixtamalized tortillas and tortilla chips now available in many supermarkets and served by other top city chefs.

At his MAiiZ Nixtamal tortilleria, you can eat in or take out his authentic Mexican specialities — whether a trio of tacos filled with tender braised beef barbacoa, grilled cactus or local chanterelle mushroom chilaquiles, Chicken Tinga Tamales or hearty bowls of pozole and tortilla soups. Even the desserts served at MAiiZ start with his nixtamalized organic corn, whether the individual loaves of sweet cornbread, or his crispy churros, rolled in cinnamon and sugar and served with a sweet hibiscus sauce for dipping.

Sweet corn cake with condensed milk and hibiscus sauce for dessert at MAiiZ

You can also buy his jarred salsas and mole sauce, taco kits complete with various proteins and local cheese, and hominy or masa dough by the pound, perfect for creating your own tamale feasts and taco parties at home.

As a chef, Alvarez Molina is dedicated to local, Slow Food and biodiversity, and he is a consummate collaborator. You’ll often find him volunteering his time at fundraisers or doing dinners with other like-minded chefs, whether it’s a pop-up with the Argentinian chef Matias Sallaberry and his South Fire events at Zambri’s, or support for the Taco Tuesdays served by the culinary arts students at Esquimalt high school.

There’s a special MAiiZ lager made by Ile Sauvage Brewery using BC organic nixtamalized corn, and winter squash tacos on the menu at The Drake Eatery.

The local butchers at Haus Sausage Co. make the Chicken Tinga, Mexican Chicken Chorizo and Beef Barbacoa that comes along with MAiiiZ taco meal kits, with local Natural Pastures cheese curds in the quesadilla and enchilada kits.

Before arriving in Victoria, Alvarez Molina was Chef de Cuisine at Pujol in Mexico City. It’s a top restaurant with two Michelin stars and is famed for its dark, slow-simmering mole sauce, one that is continuously renewed and rebuilt each day by adding fresh ingredients to the "mother sauce" base.

It’s a fitting metaphor for this chef’s commitment to his craft, his community and his heritage — creating a unique Canadian product built with the best local ingredients and age old Mexican traditions.

©CindaChavich2025