Traditional Mexican Huitlacoche Quesadilla

A simple quesadilla with huitlacoche / corn mushrooms / corn smut is probably a contender for one of the best quesadillas I've had, especially if you're new to cooking with huitlacoche, or, you like it and you want to sneak it into a meal to convert people. 

A Traditional Meat Substitute

Huitlacoche is a traditional filling for quesadillas, and often used as a meat replacement (zucchini blossoms too) as it's harvested in large quantities in Mexico, where it's sold in cans year round.

If you go to a decent Mexican restaurant and look at the list of "protein options", along with the carnitas and al pastor, you'll probably see huitlacoche, or corn mushrooms. 

I love huitlacoche, but I don't often order it at Mexican restaurants because it's always canned, which isn't anywhere near as good as fresh or frozen. Canned huitlacoche is heavy on the juice, and also contains a large amount of field corn that gets cut off the cob as the mushrooms are being removed.

Field corn is just like what it sounds like: it's the sort of tough, hard kernels that are grown to feed animals in the United States. If canned huitlacoche is the only thing that you can find though, it will do in a pinch. Fresh and frozen huitlacoche will run about 25$ / pound through wholesalers if you can't find any yourself. 

How to Make it

Essentially we're just cooking down the mushrooms with onion, garlic and tomato to make a thick black paste-but it's a delicious black paste. For clarity, in the images I'm making a triple batch of the recipe as it's easily scaled.

The first thing to do is prepare the huitlacoche. If you're lucky enough to get some fresh during the season, remove the husk, along with as much of the corn silk as you can, then cut the mushroom kernels from the cob, leaving as little mushroom on the cob as possible. If the huitlacoche is frozen, it just needs to be thawed.

Next, the aromatic base. Sweat some minced or grated garlic in oil until golden, then add finely chopped onions, cooking them down low and slow until tender. The subtle texture of the mushroom is the star here, so take your time and make sure the onions are tender.

Next, the huitlacoche. Traditionally, the mushrooms might be pounded to a paste on a metate: a wide stone tool used to grind corn and other grains. Frozen mushrooms will become thick on their own, but if I use fresh mushrooms I'll crush them with a wooden mallet.

After the mushroom liquid's cooked off, add the tomatoes. If I use frozen huitlacoche, I add the mushroms and tomatoes at the same time. Fresh tomatoes are traditional, but canned are easier, and I like the way they help thicken the mixture. Depending on availability I will make it either way.

After the tomato and mushrooms are added the mixture's cooked down slowly to evaporate moisture. Once you can see the bottom of the pan when stirring it's done-season the mixture to taste and add a handful of cilantro, epazote, or both.

Final Quesadillas

Finally, the fun part. Take some tortillas and put them on a cast iron griddle or a comal with some melting cheese like Queso Oaxaca, Chihuahua or Queso Quesadilla. In a pinch mozzarella or Monterey jack is ok, but only ok. Add a spoonful of the mushroom mixture.

Then fold the tortilla in half, pressing down gently to force a little cheese out on the peripheries, which will give you a golden brown cheese skirt, as we say in restaurant parlance.

Once they're hot and the tortillas have some color they're done. If you want, peel one side up and drizzle a spoonful of hot sauce in each one, or serve some alongside.

Make no mistake, huitlacoche (especially frozen or canned) has a strong, unique flavor. It tastes mushroomy and rich, almost smoky, with a slightly bitter, saffron-like metallic flavor only the mushrooms can provide. Like most delicacies, it will grow on you. I'll be serving a few hundred of them at the North American Mycological Society Foray next week in Michigan.

Chef's Tips

There's a very big difference in using fresh and frozen huitlacoche here. The freezing process breaks down the mushrooms somewhat, releasing a lot of water and turning jet black during the process, and developing a stronger flavor similar to canned huitlacoche.

Cut fresh off the cob, the mushrooms don't turn completely black, and you'll have many more visible kernels that keep a more firm texture. While fresh is my preference, the vast majority of people will only have access to frozen or canned huitlacoche. See the two finished products side by side below for comparison.

Flour tortillas get golden brown, crisp and delicious, but are not the most traditional here. I prefer corn tortillas personally, both for their chewy texture and the fact I can't tolerate gluten. As another option, consider making fresh tortillas or stuffed, masa cakes or pupusas with the huitlacoche mix.

Meat eaters and vegetarians will gobble them up faster than you can say corn smut, but I've also done versions with chorizo sausage and mushrooms that were good too.

Related Posts  

• Huitlacoche
• Huitlacoch Elotes
• Huitlacoche Recipes
• Choriqueso Dip with Mushrooms

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Huitlacoche Quesadilla

A simple quesadilla made with huitlacoche or corn mushrooms, instead of meat. The huitlacoche mixture makes more than you need, enough for 2-3 quesadillas depending on size.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Course: Appetizer, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: 2

Author: Alan Bergo

Ingredients

• 8 oz fresh or frozen huitlacoche you can use canned huitlacoche but it's not quite the same
• 6 oz 2 large Roma tomatoes (1 one cup canned peeled whole tomatoes or equivalent)
• Kosher salt, to taste
• Small handful of chopped fresh cilantro Epazote can also be added, and is traditional
• 1 Tablespoons lard or cooking oil
• Crushed red pepper flakes or 1 jalapeno, chopped
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• ½ tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 oz grated cheese, such as queso Oaxaca, mozzarella, etc
• 8 inch flour tortilla

Instructions

• Tomatoes
• Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Meanwhile, core the tomatoes, score the bottoms with and X, then put in the boiling water for 30 seconds or until the skin around the X starts to peel back. Remove the tomatoes, cool, peel, squeeze out the seeds and discard, then chop the tomatoes and reserve.
• Huitlacoche mixture
• In a saute pan, heat the lard or oil and add the onion and garlic. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until translucent, then add the huitlacoche and tomato and cook, mashing the mixture up with the back of a spoon as it cooks, until the pan is nearly dry. Season the mixture with salt to taste, add the cilantro and reserve.
• Finishing and serving
• To make the quesadilla, grease a large pan, such as a 12 inch cast iron skillet. Add the tortilla and warm it on both sides for a moment or two until pliable on medium heat, then add the cheese and roughly ½ -¾ cup of the huitlacoche mixture. When the cheese has started to melt, fold the quesadilla in half, pressing it down gently to help it brown evenly.
• Add some extra oil if the pan looks dry. Peak under the quesadilla to check on it’s color, when one side is browned, flip it, pressing down gently again, and adding a teaspoon of oil if needed, cooking until the other side is golden brown and crisp.
• When both sides are brown and crisp, remove the quesadilla to a cutting board, cut into 4 wedges, sprinkle with cilantro and serve with your favorite accompaniments.

Video