Vanilla came to Europe half a thousand years ago. At the beginning of the 16th century, it was brought to Spain by the conquistador Hernán Cortés de Monroy Pizarro Altamirano, who had previewed the use of vanilla sticks at the court of the Aztec ruler Montezuma.

The first people to ever use the plant were the Totonac, the indigenous people of Mexico, who eventually were conquered by the Aztecs. They discovered that the fruit of the evergreen liana had an antipyretic effect. Later they found that dried vanilla pods were excellent for flavoring food and drinks. Cortés tasted vanilla in a "xocolatl", a drink with cocoa, chili, vanilla, and cinnamon.