Raw vs Gelatinised Maca: Why You Should Never Eat Raw Maca

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By Dr Corin Storkey, co-founder of Seleno Health · Updated November 2026

In Peru, where maca has been eaten for over 2,000 years, it is almost never eaten raw. Andean families cook it, boiling the dried root into teas, soups and porridges. Yet much of the maca powder sold overseas is raw. Here is why traditional preparation matters, what gelatinised (or "activated") maca is, and why it is the form we recommend.

Key takeaways

Maca is traditionally always cooked before eating in Peru.
Raw maca is high in starch, which many people find hard to digest, and it can carry moulds and bacteria.
Gelatinised (activated) maca is briefly pressure-cooked with steam, making it ready to eat, easier to digest and sweeter tasting.
Traditional drying and heating help form maca's signature bioactive compounds, macamides.
Gelatinised maca contains no gelatin and is 100% vegan.

What is the traditional way to take Maca in Peru?

Maca has been eaten for centuries in Peru for energy, stamina and vitality, and is traditionally used for hormonal balance and libido. It is a starchy root vegetable, made up mostly of carbohydrate, and like a potato it has always been cooked: boiled in soups, or grated and simmered as a tea or porridge, using the fresh or dried root.

According to local tradition, Inca workers consumed large amounts of boiled maca for energy. In Junín, maca is still added to a spiced tea with cinnamon, cloves and dried fruit. Because fresh roots cannot be exported from Peru, maca reaches the rest of the world as powder or dried pieces, which makes it especially important to know how that powder has been prepared. For the safest option, choose gelatinised (activated) maca that has been pre-cooked.

What is activated or gelatinized maca?

No, it has nothing to do with gelatin. Gelatinisation is a cooking process that breaks down starch using heat and pressure. To make gelatinised maca, dried maca is briefly pressure-cooked with steam (typically around 10 seconds), which also reduces bacteria and mould. Gelatinised maca is 100% vegan, and because the name confuses many people, it is increasingly called "activated" maca. It is the modern equivalent of the traditional Andean practice of cooking maca before eating it.

Why eat gelatinized maca vs raw maca powder?

Dried maca roots and raw maca powder can carry moulds, and some moulds can produce aflatoxins, toxins that are known carcinogens and are not reliably destroyed by cooking at home. Heat treatment during processing, combined with testing, is the best way to reduce this risk at the source. Gelatinised maca also has a sweeter, caramel-like flavour and is easier to digest than raw maca, which many people find bloating because of its high starch content.

Raw maca can carry mould; heat-treated, tested maca reduces the risk.

If we cook maca, does it lose its nutrients?

Not in the way you might think. Much of the clinical research on maca has used traditionally prepared or gelatinised maca, and these studies still reported effects, which suggests cooking does not destroy maca's active compounds. Dr Gustavo F. Gonzales of Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, one of the world's leading maca researchers, wrote in his review of maca:

"The process of preparation of maca is important to obtain adequate biological effects. Traditionally maca is boiled or extracted in alcohol before it is consumed. In experimental studies, aqueous extract of maca is only effective after boiling pulverized maca hypocotyls in water….The boiling process seems to increase active metabolites."

We can eat maca powder mixed within a raw smoothie or raw food as long as it is pre-cooked or gelatinized first.

Maca prepared the traditional way in Junin, Peru, boiled into a tea to benefit from its virtues and properties.

What happens when we cook maca?

Maca's best-studied bioactive compounds are macamides, fatty-acid compounds found only in maca. They are thought to underlie many of maca's traditional uses, and lab studies, including our own research with the University of Otago, show they interact with the endocannabinoid system. Read what our maca research found.

"According to science, bioactive macamides in maca are heat activated molecules."

Here's what we currently know about the chemistry of maca and macamides: The formation of a macamide happens post-harvest as the maca is traditionally sun-dried from breakdown of the heat sensitive glucosinolates (1) in the fresh maca bulb (Scheme 1). During initial drying there is release of lipids (9) and a key biochemical called benzylamine (7) that forms from the broken down glucosinolates. These precursors the combine to form different bioactive macamides (12). This combination occurs from dehydration of the root during drying and is a heat-activated process. So heating maca can actually enhance this biochemical process and cooking the root therefore makes sense biochemically.

Scheme 1. Chemical process starting with the breakdown of heat sensitive glucosinolates, until the formation of bioactive macamides’ occurs with heat.

"The evidence supports what Andean growers have long practised: sun-drying and cooking are key to getting the most from maca."

Summary - Why you should never eat raw maca

Raw maca can carry mould, and some moulds produce aflatoxins, which are not reliably destroyed by cooking at home. Heat treatment and testing during processing reduce this risk at the source.
Raw maca is high in starch, which can cause bloating, gas and digestive discomfort.
Traditional drying and heating help form and preserve macamides, maca's signature bioactive compounds.
In our own testing of commercially available raw maca samples, bacterial counts were around 2x higher and mould counts around 8x higher than in our activated maca.
Gelatinised maca tastes sweeter and blends easily into smoothies, with no cooking needed.

Raw maca contains high levels of starch and when consumed this way, it may cause problems with our digestion, as it is hard to digest, it can cause symptoms like distention, gas, bloating and abdominal discomfort.
The health benefits of maca powder seem to be enhanced by heat, this is not only what an ancient civilization and its descendants believe, it is also proven by science. So better consume it the traditional way if you want to take advantage of all the benefits cooked maca powder offers.
We have analysed commercially available samples of raw maca and found out that bacterial concentrations are 2x higher and mould concentrations are 8x higher than our activated maca. You do not want to play those odds?
Gelatinized or activated maca has a sweeter, caramel-like flavour and is more palatable compared to raw maca, which has a tarter taste and often has grainy starch sediments in solution when it is not cook. Gelatinized maca is perfect for blending with your favourite smoothie and 100% safe for you and your gut.

Is gelatinized maca (activated maca) your best option?

For most people, yes. It tastes better, blends easily, needs no cooking and is the closest modern equivalent to the traditional Andean way of eating maca. It is 100% vegan and contains no gelatin, which is why we only sell activated maca. Browse our organic activated maca powder, compare the different types of maca, or read how to choose the best maca powder.

Frequently asked questions

Can you eat raw maca powder?

We do not recommend it. In Peru maca is traditionally always cooked. Raw maca is high in starch, which can upset digestion, and it can carry moulds and bacteria. Choose gelatinised (activated) maca, or cook raw maca thoroughly.

What is gelatinised maca?

Gelatinised (activated) maca is maca powder that has been briefly pressure-cooked with steam. This breaks down starch, reduces microbial load and gives a sweeter flavour. It contains no gelatin and is vegan.

Does cooking maca destroy its nutrients?

No. Much of the clinical research on maca used cooked or gelatinised maca, and traditional drying and heating are when maca's macamides form.

Is gelatinised maca better than raw maca?

For most people, yes: it is easier to digest, ready to eat, tastes better and follows the traditional practice of cooking maca before eating it.

References

Gonzales GF. Ethnobiology and ethnopharmacology of Lepidium meyenii (maca), a plant from the Peruvian highlands. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2012;2012:193496.
Esparza E, et al. Bioactive maca (Lepidium meyenii) alkamides are a result of traditional Andean postharvest drying practices. Phytochemistry. 2015;116:138–148.