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Two large jars of aguas frescas in a taquería in Seattle, Washington, USA. On the left is a jar of jamaica and on the right is a jar of horchata. Restaurant employees serve the drinks by ladling them from the jars into glasses.

Horchata or orxata is the name for several kinds of vegetable beverages, made of ground almonds, rice, barley or tigernuts (chufas).

The name comes from Valencian orxata, probably from ordiata, made from ordi (barley) (Latin *hordeata < hordeum). The French and English 'orgeat', the Italian 'orzata', and the Surinamese Dutch orgeade have the same origin, though the beverages themselves have diverged, and none of them is typically made from barley anymore. ^[1] One legend links the origins of the name to King Jaume I, who after being given the drink for the first time by a local in Alboraya, was said to have exclaimed "Això es or,xata" ("That's gold girl") ^{[2] [3]}

In Spain, it usually refers to orxata de xufes (horchata de chufas), made from tigernuts, water and sugar.

Originally from Valencia, the idea of making horchata from tigernuts comes from the period of Muslim presence in Valencia (from the 8th to 13th century).

It has a regulating council[1] to ensure the quality of the product and the villages where it can come from, with the Denomination of Origin. Classics get an A. The village of Alboraia is well known for the quality of their horchata.

It is served ice cold as a natural refreshment in the summer. But tigernut horchata has other additional uses:

• to replace milk in lactose intolerant people.
• in diarrhea.

While in some countries the drink is usually tan and "milky", some recipes call for milk, and others do not. Other ingredients often include sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Though horchata was once typically homemade, it is now available in both ready-to-drink (shelf-stable or refrigerated) and powdered form in grocery stores.

In the US, rice-based or morro horchata is served in many Mexican restaurants, and the horchata de chufas (tigernut) is virtually unknown. Rice-based horchata is also sometimes available in US grocery and convenience stores, especially in Latino neighborhoods.

Horchata, together with tamarindo and jamaica, are the three typical drink flavors of Mexican aguas frescas.

The horchata found in El Salvador is often made of a mixture of herbs, not rice. The horchata is typically flavored with Morro (Calabash tree) seed, ground cocoa and cinnamon as well as sesame seeds, and in some cases is strained.

In Nicaragua and Honduras horchata refers to the drink known as semilla de jicaro, made from the Jicaro seeds ground up with rice and spices. The drink is made with cold milk and sugar and is very popular nationally. Recently Nicaragua has began exporting this product primarily to the United States.

Some Latin-American bars in Southern California use horchata as a mixer in a cocktail known as a Rice Rocket. The drink is made of 2 parts horchata, 1 part coconut-flavored rum and a dash of Goldschläger over ice.

• Aguas frescas
• Almond milk
• Caudle
• Chicha
• Rice milk

• The Regulating Council of Denomination of Origin "Chufa de Valencia": Quality council regulating tigernut horchata in Valencia

• Agua de Horchata Recipe(Spanish)