Taste of Mexico: Cuitlacoche

I’ve earnestly considered renaming this bid to “Don’t justice my constituent by its suspiciously unusual appearance.”

Today, I privation to present you to huitlacoche, often referred to arsenic the Mexican truffle. It has a unsocial spirit that I’m definite I won’t beryllium capable to picture perfectly. Although huitlacoche has been astir arsenic agelong arsenic maize, its popularity arsenic a nutrient root is simply a much caller development.

This handsome devil is huitlacoche, the delicacy known successful English arsenic maize smut. (Amada44 / CC 4.0)

Cuitla-what-che? 

Cuitlacoche, besides known arsenic huitlacoche, is simply a parasitic fungus that exclusively grows connected maize plants, affecting their maize kernels, stalks and leaves. Called maize smut successful English, it typically appears during the rainy summertime play and tin alteration successful colour from grayish to bluish and adjacent heavy black. The spirit of huitlacoche is arsenic intriguing arsenic its appearance; it has earthy notes with hints of chocolate, vanilla and a somewhat bitter taste, alongside a subtle smokiness and a resemblance to achromatic corn. See? Words neglect astatine adequately describing its unsocial flavor.

The Náhuatl connection cuitlacoche astir translates to “excrement that grows connected something”;in this case, corn. While we won’t delve into the science of the Mexica people, the sanction provides penetration into however cuitlacoche was not traditionally regarded arsenic a prized constituent successful pre-Columbian cultures.

Is it truly similar truffle?

The examination isn’t wholly far-fetched. In accepted settings, the root of huitlacoche is unpredictable, and locating infected maize cobs among towering maize fields, which tin turn implicit 2 meters high, is simply a challenging and time-consuming task. The maturation of huitlacoche is straight influenced by rainfall and humidity levels. Although it whitethorn look casual to negociate humidity successful a field, the fungus is really dispersed by birds and different earthy factors that impact the maize. Therefore, it has traditionally been hard to power huitlacoche production. In caller decades, however, huitlacoche accumulation techniques developed by Mexican scientists person made it imaginable to turn the fungus year-round with reliable yields.

In presumption of cost, though not rather astatine the level of truffles, huitlacoche is often much costly than regular corn, owed to its rarity and the challenges associated with harvesting it.

A modern dish 

Historical probe reveals that pre-Columbian cultures viewed huitlacoche much arsenic a nuisance than arsenic a delicacy. In fact, they believed that eating it could pb to poisoning. 

Huitlacoche connected the cob. (Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural)

It wasn’t until the 1950s that upscale restaurants began to diagnostic dishes similar huitlacoche crepes and chickenhearted successful huitlacoche condiment connected their menus. These dishes gained popularity for their exotic and intriguing qualities.

Today, huitlacoche is overmuch much accessible and wide consumed, though its popularity remains mostly concentrated successful cardinal regions of Mexico. Even now, successful immoderate agrarian communities, the quality of huitlacoche is considered a divine curse. In others, it is ignored, and successful immoderate instances, it is consumed much retired of necessity than arsenic a culinary treat.

If it’s god’s poo, wherefore are you eating it? 

The mode we navigator huitlacoche — with onions, aromatic herbs and ail — whitethorn beryllium what makes its spirit perfectly delicious and irresistible. 

As a supermarket shopper, you’re much apt to brushwood cuitlacoche successful this signifier erstwhile looking for it successful the vegetables section. (Nsaum75 / CC A-SA 3.0)

In summation to its large taste, caller studies person shown that huitlacoche offers galore wellness benefits owed to its precocious levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and proteins. Fun information for our vegetarian friends: huitlacoche contains 17% much macromolecule than different mushrooms and has little abdominous than astir of them.

Ways to bask the Mexican Truffle

In Durango, Jalisco and Chiapas, huitlacoche is utilized to marque a drink, a benignant of atole. In cardinal Mexico, wherever the astir experimentation with this fungus occurs, it is consumed successful soups, moles, tamales and, of course, tacos and quesadillas. 

Interestingly, pairing huitlacoche with nixtamalized maize successful tacos and quesadillas maximizes its nutritional benefits. So, if you spot huitlacoche oregon cuitlacoche connected the paper astatine a restaurant, don’t hesitate to effort it. The spirit is unsocial and dissimilar thing you’ve experienced before. 

A cuitlacoche taco. (E.dronism / CC SA 4.0)

If you’re walking down the thoroughfare and travel crossed a taco oregon quesadilla basal offering cuitlacoche, marque definite to bid a taco. My idiosyncratic favourite is the quesadilla, which features a homemade agelong tortilla, Oaxaca food and cooked cuitlacoche. That archetypal wound is simply glorious!

Making your ain cuitlacoche dishes

Want to hole cuitlacoche astatine home? As always, we’ve got you covered! When buying huitlacoche, it’s champion to acquisition it inactive connected the maize cob. However, if you similar to skip the hassle, look for pre-packaged trays. If the huitlacoche appears black, dried out, oregon has achromatic foodstuff surrounding it successful the tray, it’s apt not precise fresh. Fresh huitlacoche should look grayish and fluffy, astir begging to beryllium squeezed.

To navigator the fungus, the simplest and astir communal method is to sauté ail and bulb successful a cookware with immoderate lipid until they go translucent. Then, adhd the huitlacoche and navigator until it releases immoderate of its juices and aromas. Finally, play with brackish to sensation and adhd a fewer leaves of epazote. Treat huitlacoche similar immoderate different mushroom, and you’ll beryllium conscionable fine. Once your huitlacoche is cooked, vigor up a tortilla and hole yourself a taco!

In Chiapas, a southeastern state, I learned that you tin bask huitlacoche uncooked by making a purée. Simply mash the huitlacoche and adhd immoderate salt. Once you person your purée, usage it to marque quesadillas. To a regular tortilla, adhd food and your huitlacoche purée, past navigator until the food is melted. The spirit is truthful overmuch much aggravated and caller this way.

Have you tried the Mexican truffle? How would you picture its flavor?