Sopa de Huitlacoche

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A rich, creamy huitlacoche soup made from black beans and huitlacoche topped with a fresh salad of cherry tomatoes and herbs. A traditional, brothy version is described in the recipe notes.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Appetizer, Soup

Cuisine: American, Mexican

Keyword: huitlacoche soup recipe

Servings: People

Calories: 221kcal

Author: Alan Bergo

Cost: 10

Equipment

1 3 quart soup pot
1 Blender like a Vitamix

Ingredients

Soup

¼ cup cooking oil or bacon fat, or lard, divided
6 oz white onion diced
3 oz leek diced
3 oz celery diced
8 oz huitlacoche frozen or canned
8 oz tomato puree or tomato sauce, etc
3 cups beef stock ideally homemade, or use vegetable stock
½ tsp cumin seed
2 teaspoon ancho chili powder

Cherry Tomato Salad

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
6 oz small cherry tomatoes
3 oz (1 small) roasted bell pepper peeled and diced
½ oz (small handful) cilantro stems thinly sliced, leaves roughly chopped
2 tablespoon fresh basil sliced or gently torn
2 tablespoon thinly sliced chives or nodding onion optional
kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lime juice to taste

Sour Cream Garnish

½ cup sour cream or Mexican crema
kosher salt to taste
2 tablespoon buttermilk or a splash of milk or water, just enough to loosen it

Instructions

In a 3 quart soup pot, sweat the leek, celery, onion and garlic in half of the oil on medium heat until translucent, about 15 minutes.
Add the cumin and chili powder, along with the mushrooms and bring to a simmer. Cook until the pan is nearly dry and the liquid's evaporated.
Add the tomato puree or sauce, stock, beans, potato and bring to a simmer. Cook at a gentle bubble until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.
Working in two batches, carefully puree the hot soup, starting on low speed and moving up to high, drizzling in a tablespoon of oil for each batch.
Taste and adjust the seasoning for salt, cool and refrigerate. The flavor will improve if it's made the night before.

Cherry Tomato Salad

Halve the cherry tomatoes and mix in a bowl with the bell pepper, herbs, salt, oil and lime juice to taste.

Sour Cream

Season the sour cream with a pinch of salt and thin it with a splash of buttermilk (or milk or water in a pinch) to loosen.

Serving

Ladle the hot soup into bowls, drizzle the sour cream on top, then spoon some of the salad in the middle and serve.

Video

Notes

Broth-Based Version with Fresh Mushrooms

A more traditional, brothy Sopa de Huitlacoche. I've also added black nightshade leaves in place of the chorizo for a vegetarian version.

Serves 6-8

16 oz fresh huitlacoche
4 oz white onion, diced
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
2 tablespoons pork lard or cooking oil
5 cups chicken stock
1 small potato (3 oz) peeled and diced ½ inch
1 cup pureed canned, peeled tomatoes
4 oz chorizo sausage
Piece of smoked pork skin or a smoked bone (optional)
½ cup dried black beans or 1 12 oz can
1 large bay leaf
1 tablespoon sliced epazote leaves (optional)
½ teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon mild chili powder, such as ancho or guajillo for a kick

Finishing the soup

Sour cream thinned with a splash of heavy cream or milk until it can be drizzled
Chopped fresh cilantro
finely diced white onion (optional)
Diced avocado (optional)

Cook the chorizo in the oil until the fat renders and it’s nearly crisp. Add the onion and garlic and cook on medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the huitlacoche, and cook, stirring occasionally until the pan is nearly dry and all of the liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for 1 hour, or until the beans are tender. Adjust the seasoning, cool and refrigerate. The flavor improves if it's made the night before.

Nutrition