Achiote Paste

Achiote paste, or annatto paste, is made from Mexican annatto seeds –renowned for their bright colour, used as a dye in tribal war paint, and even to create the ‘red’ colour in Red Leicester. This block of achiote paste is perfect for making the brightly-coloured marinades and sauces associated with authentic Mexican dishes. The faintly nutty flavours, and vivid colour makes achiote paste the perfect ingredient for bringing colour to a Mexican fiesta.  

Achiote paste is usually associated with traditional Mayan dishes like pit-roasted pig and tikin-xic fish, but it can be found in lots of other South American and Cajan dishes too. Simply break some of the achiote paste from the block, dilute it in a little vinegar or oil, and then stir it into a sauce or marinade. This 1kg pack of achiote paste is enough for 30kg of meat.

Ingredients 1kg: water, annatto seeds, corn flour, salt, garlic, spices, acetic acid, sodium benzoate – as a preservative.

Ingredients 100g: Water, corn flour, annatto seeds (22%), salt, garlic, spices, acidity regulator(acid acid) E260 and preservative (sodium benzoate) E211.