[porkwah]

what's the deal with the legality / illegality of huitlacoche in the US?

should i have seen the cans of it which are sometimes around on mexican store shelves?

[ranitidine]

porkwah, on Sep 10 2006, 06:09 PM, said:

what's the deal with the legality / illegality of huitlacoche in the US?

should i have seen the cans of it which are sometimes around on mexican store shelves?

What is it?

[porkwah]

aka corn smut

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corn_smut

an amusing article

http://www.thesneeze...ives/000344.php

[Orik]

porkwah, on Sep 10 2006, 06:09 PM, said:

what's the deal with the legality / illegality of huitlacoche in the US?

should i have seen the cans of it which are sometimes around on mexican store shelves?

I never thought there are legal issues with selling canned 'coche, very widely available in mexican stores.

[foodie52]

Why wouldn't it be legal? It's not available fresh.

[Miguel Gierbolini]

I have had it here in Puerto Rico in a restaurant. It was indeed more expensive. Perhaps the cost of smuggling it.

[cabrales]

It's available at a number of restaurants in NYC, including Maya's huitlacoche dumplings with I believe its chicken main. I've had it several times at different restaurants.

[Miguel Gierbolini]

Miguel Gierbolini, on Sep 10 2006, 06:57 PM, said:

I have had it here in Puerto Rico in a restaurant. It was indeed more expensive. Perhaps the cost of smuggling it.

Coincidentally, in the Links thread porkwah just pointed us to a site ("Steve don't eat it") that has someone's take (Steve) on huitlacoche:



Steve, Don't Eat It! Vol. 7

Cuitlacoche

Cuitlacoche is a black fungus that infects corn fields, making the kernels bulbous and swollen as they fill with spores. It also goes by the name Huitlacoche. If you're having trouble with the pronounciation, it's: Cuitlacoche (kweet-lah-KOH-chay) or Huitlacoche (dat-sfuckin-NAS-tee).

It's safe to say this is the first time I've ever paid for an infection. I am, of course, not counting the one I got from your mother. (YES! You walked right into that.)

I've read that U.S. farmers consider it a disease and destroy it. Farmers in Mexico put it in cans and sell it as a delicacy. I travelled far and wide to find my own precious can of Cuitlacoche. Okay, it was at my supermarket, but I had to drive like two miles to get there and got stuck at a couple of lights.

Enough chit-chat. I'm gonna go dine on a can of disease. But before I do, I really do feel bad about that cheap mother joke. My sincere apologies to you and your lovely mom. (The filthy whore.) Be right back!

Oh, sweet Christ. Visually, I think the bar for Steve, Don't Eat It! is about to be set at a new low. So I'm going to ease you people into this one. Let's begin with a single spore-filled kernel before we examine the entire contents.

The following picture is a swear-to-God-unretouched-side-by-side comparison of a normal kernel of corn and an infected huitlacoche kernel, both from the same can.



These results can also be achieved by bombarding a kernel of corn with gamma rays and then making it angry. (But be warned. You won't like it when it's angry.)

Alright, you've waited long enough.

Presenting the entire can of imported sludge (that I was actually charged money for)...

Don't worry, I checked the ingredients before I tasted it. "Smoker's lung" was not on there.

Before I even got the whole can open, I detected a vague aroma of sweet corn, along with what I can only describe as a deep musky funk. Put 'em together and it smells like corn that forgot to wipe.

In just a single serving, you'll experience a wide array of textures. Without getting too gross, it's because the disease is more advanced in some kernels than others. One bite might be kinda chewy, while the next might burst in your mouth like a black pus-filled blister. (Whoops, forgot about the not-too-gross thing. Oh well. Nuts to you!)

So, how does Huitlacoche taste? Does it matter?? LOOK AT IT!



I guess it would be fair to say it doesn't taste as truly horrible as it looks. The flavor is elusive and difficult to describe, but I'll try: "Kinda yucky." Hey, that wasn't so hard after all. (Sometimes I forget I'm a goddamn wordsmith.)

For any connoisseurs, I'm not sure if this stuff would go better with red wine or white. How about with a bottle of Bactine? I've always found that goes great with infections.

Huitlacoche also goes by some other names. It's frequently called Maize Mushroom, Corn Smut, and Mexican Truffle. I've even heard it referred to as "Devil Poop"-- but that was only after I said it. (For God's sake, it comes with little bits of corn already in it! Talk about a time-saver.)

I thought it was interesting that Monteblanco chose to make their company logo the focal point of the can. I also found a can of huitlacoche from Goya. They, too, have downplayed the visuals by hiding it in a mild-mannered burrito.

I went ahead and made a new can label for the gang back at Cuitlacoche Central. As always, this is a free service.

Well, that brings us to the end of a long overdue Steve, Don't Eat It! And now I have a belly full of diseased corn. Maybe I should go see a doctor about a penicillin shot.

For your mom. (YES! In your face! Oh man...)

[porkwah]

so while we're on the subject, who has had it and really liked it?

i had it in a restaurant in coyoacan (part of mexico city) and thought it was kind of interesting, and pretty good. the restaurant wasn't all that great though.

[joiei]

I had it in a crepe presentation at Lanny's Alta Cucina Mexicana in Ft Worth and it was delicious. I seem to remember that there was duck also in the crepe.

[cristina]

I've eaten it fairly frequently, and of course we see it fresh here in the street markets. On Friday, a vendor at my usual market had a basketful that was absolutely gorgeous. The difference between canned and fresh huitlacoche is the same as the difference between, for example, canned tuna and a freshly seared tuna steak.

Ricardo Muñoz Zurita, owner of Restaurante Azul y Oro in Mexico City, prepares a huitlacoche sauce for pasta that will make you want to slap your mama. It's out of this world delicious.

If my camera is ever out of the shop (maybe next week?), I'll photograph some fresh huitlacoche for your viewing pleasure.

[Abbylovi]

porkwah, on Sep 10 2006, 07:24 PM, said:

so while we're on the subject, who has had it and really liked it?

When in Oaxaca, I tried and tried to find it but had no success. I've only had the canned version in NYC and didn't really get the fuss.

[GG Mora]

That thing looks for all the world like an engorged tick. No thanks.

[rancho_gordo]

I've had it and loved it, too. And I've made tiny slits in the bottom of my corn stalks to encourage it but no luck. There was a vendor at the farmers market who had it and would give me every funky, lovely ear of corn and tell me as he handed it to me, "You will not see this next year!" and he was right because he started spraying his field. I think it looks beautiful and kind of like a biblical wrath on a cob but apparently most gringo customers did not like the dramatic look. I had an ear out to show people what it was and they would ask me to put it away.
Here's a an ear with just a few kernals affected, from 2004 when I last grew corn.

[shelora]

Abbylovi, on Sep 11 2006, 02:31 PM, said:

porkwah, on Sep 10 2006, 07:24 PM, said:

so while we're on the subject, who has had it and really liked it?

When in Oaxaca, I tried and tried to find it but had no success. I've only had the canned version in NYC and didn't really get the fuss.

It is a seasonal thing, is it not? I've had it a few times fresh - not from a can - and I like it alot.



I've heard that someone in the Chicago area is cultivating it. In fact, I've heard a few times of American farmers producing it for restaurants.

Rancho, that photograph is beautiful.