Commoners were prohibited this sacred version of pozole. Aztec Food Facts. Perhaps due to their cozy qualities, Xolos did gain popularity as the Aztec empire expanded trade routes and even more so once colonialism began the globalization of the New World. Besides these three main staples the Aztecs ate a variety of foods including insects, fish, honey, dogs, and snakes. The diners were typically the highest level priests and the emperor. Aztec children who attended this school would later on become priests or government officials and leaders. This is why the Aztecs specialised in many innovations in agriculture, such as the floating gardens of Tenochtitlan. Other important staples were beans and squash. Aztec food also included beans and squash. Aztec boys started their education at 15 years old at the calmecac. To add to these three, the Mexicas (people of the Aztec Empire) ate chillies, tomatoes, limes, cashews, potatoes, sweet potatoes, peanuts, and of course chocolate. Those who did not attend this school went to cuicacalli, a junior military academy, which would give them more skills in the important art of war. It was a representation of the duality of life, beginning (the Aztec believed themselves to be the people of the corn) and end (death as the final product). Aztecs under attack: Hernán Cortés, with 200 Spaniards and 5,000 Indians defeats a larger Aztec force in 1520. Photograph: Unknown/ Archivo Iconografico, S.A./CORBIS The Aztecs themselves did not grow cacao beans and so imported them, insisting that everywhere that could grow them, pay a tribute to them in cacao beans. What did the average person eat? What did they eat? Of course, maize and beans are still a cornerstone of the Mexican diet, a healthy combination especially if you're not eating a lot of meat. The Aztecs were traditionally a vegetarian peoples because their diet depended heavily on agricultural produce. "In Aztec times most Mexicans breakfasted long after they had begun the day, stopping only at about 10 a.m. for a bowl of maize porridge flavoured with honey or capsicums, which sustained them until the main meal taken in the early afternoon, when it … Did you know? The Aztec language, Nahuatl, was the dominant language in central Mexico by the mid-1350s. The Aztecs (really the Mexica) had no cows, sheep, or goats as sources of milk in quantity. Basic Aztec facts: AZTEC FOODS Without animals like cows, sheep and goats, the Mexica (Aztec) diet was mainly veg, fruit and grains. There was a highly symbolic significance to this meal. Making cheese requires producing milk in volume. The main staple of the Aztec diet was maize (similar to corn). They ground the maize into flour to make tortillas.