annemckinney

Huitlacoche Quesadilla

huitlacoche quesedilla sliced into 3 halves and topped with avocado slices and salsa verde

Huitlacoche is corn fungus, also called corn smut. It’s hard to find fresh because it has a short shelf life, so your best bet is to walk alongside a corn field in mid-late summer, after some deer have nibbled on the ears at the edge and rainwater has collected in the space under the husk. Or, you know, find canned or frozen huitlacoche. We had a rainy summer in 2024 and so we lucked into a decent supply during a hike around Clinton Lake. Check out this especially giant piece below!

Big chunk of huitlacoche found in the "wild." This is what you're looking for if you go smut hunting.

I looked at a few different recipes for huitlacoche and they all had a lot of overlap, so this recipe is what they all seem to have in common. Feel free to tailor this as needed or use the filling to make tacos or taco salad, or something similar.

Huitlacoche (up to 1 lb.)
1-2 small to medium tomatoes, diced
1 small to medium onion
2-3 minced garlic cloves
jalapeno, poblano, or anaheim pepper, diced
handful fresh cilantro, chopped
3-4 fresh epazote leaves (if you can find them), chopped
salt*
cooking oil
Oaxacan cheese, queso fresco, or mozzarella, shredded
tortillas
salsa, guacamole, avocado, or whatever other toppings you want

Remove the fungus from the corn cob and remove any debris with a dry towel. Cut away any bad spots and chop to 1/2-inch pieces. Chop the rest of the veggies. 

Heat a skillet with cooking oil and saute the onion, pepper, and tomatoes. Add the fungus and garlic, then salt.* Cook everything until tender. Add the cilantro and/or epazote.

Cooking the quesadilla in the same pan as the filling was cooked, because I like to reduce the number of pans I have to wash afterwards (yeah, I'm lazy...or efficient)

Place a tortilla and heat on a griddle on medium heat (or use the same pan as the filling was cooked if you’re like me and don’t want to wash extra dishes afterwards). Add shredded cheese on top. Add the fungus mix to one half. Cook until the cheese begins to melt and fold over. Flip so the side that only had cheese stays on the bottom. Cook a little longer so the cheese fuses everything together.

Quesedillas folded over on a griddle to finish cooking

Serve with toppings of your choice.

*You could add some other seasoning here like chili powder, but I didn’t see recipes that included it, maybe because this already has fresh peppers. When I made this, it really didn’t need the extra seasoning because the huitlacoche shines through without it. If you use epazote, this will have a different flavor profile than typical tacos, so cumin might not go with it quite as well.