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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 28, 2009 0:10:35 GMT
(pronounced: weet lah coh chay) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corn_smutIn the US it's called corn smut, and viewed with dismay by corn growers. In France, it's goitre du mais. I don't know if it's eaten there. Here in the land of corn, it's viewed as a delicacy. I bought this batch from a stand selling corn fresh from the field. The man and his son running the stand were going through the ears to find the affected ones. They chopped the fungus off the cob and put it onto styrofoam trays. When sold, it was dumped into a plastic bag. This amount was 10 pesos. I think it weighed less than a pound. You can compare it in size with the tomato, cucumber, and parsley in the photo. The huitlacoche consists of greatly enlarged, silvery colored and very tender kernels; kernels which have mutated into a fibrous yet tender mass, and lots of black semi-liquid stuff which I guess is spores. Let's take a close look:  I chopped some onion and poblano pepper and sauteed them in a little bit of olive oil while I cut up a chayote. Once the chayote became tender in the covered skillet, I added the huitlacoche, stirred it through, and covered it for a couple of minutes while I minced the epazote which was added just before serving. Here's a close-up of it in the skillet:  The taste is hard to describe. It has an earthy richness, but is also bitter, which can be off-putting at the first bite. The bitterness is akin to something burnt, but it's good. The dish I made was excellent, as the texture of the cooked chayote did not war with the tender kernels of the huitlacoche and the chayote's sweetness balanced the slight bitterness of the huitlacoche. For those who no, no, never eat funny-looking food, I offer this totally tasteless but amusing view of huitlachoche. |
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Post by lola on Oct 28, 2009 0:32:31 GMT
The way you describe it, bixa, I would dig right in.
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 28, 2009 0:35:52 GMT
Thanks, Lola ~~ that's really a compliment. The first time I ever had it was many years ago in North Caroline. I was frowning at the problem on the corn I'd planted, when it hit me that I had an exotic food item on my hands.
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Post by hwinpp on Oct 28, 2009 6:05:30 GMT
Looks like strangely shaped mushrooms to me. Nice if fried with some other stuff. I'm sure adding in some bacon wouldn't hurt either.
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Post by Don Cuevas on Oct 28, 2009 13:23:03 GMT
When I cooked some, 3 years ago, it ended up tasting lke dirt. When I took the leftovers and added more sauteed chile Poblano, onion and garlic. it was tolerably good.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 28, 2009 17:40:19 GMT
Considering the origin of things like roquefort cheese, there is no reason that it should be bad.
I would have difficulty saying that the photos look appetizing, though.
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 28, 2009 19:05:41 GMT
It is truly not a yummy-looking food item. However, I wanted to give this really different item an intro here with something other than its yuck-factor. More and more these off-the-wall foods are showing up in restaurants. I'd love to hear about good but weird stuff other people have encountered.
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Post by hwinpp on Oct 29, 2009 9:02:17 GMT
They eat banana flowers here. Good but not really weird.
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Post by bixaorellana on Oct 29, 2009 14:22:59 GMT
It's weird if you never heard of it. I never heard of it! Details, please. In a region south of here, the buds of Queen of the Night are eaten. They're just chopped up and cooked as a vegetable. |
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Post by hwinpp on Oct 30, 2009 9:30:17 GMT
Ok, next week. I'm off for the holidays, more or less until next Wednesday.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2009 9:42:48 GMT
I've heard of eating banana flowers, but my mind is drawing a blank on what they look like. Ah, here is a fancy presentation of fried banana flowers...  |
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Post by hwinpp on Oct 31, 2009 11:33:19 GMT
Hmmm, where is it? ;D
I'm sure you know what the flower looks like. Here it's eaten in soups because it needs to cook a bit otherwise it's too chewy. But I like the texture of it, not much taste if you're cooking it for an hour with a potful of goat or eel and herbs and spices.
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Post by existentialcrisis on Nov 3, 2009 9:22:51 GMT
Here in Alberta you can get "prairie oysters" at some restuarants ... which are bull testicles. I think that is pretty weird and I haven't decided if I should give it a go. Especially considering I (embarrassingly) never got around to eating fresh (real) oysters when I was on the east coast.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2009 9:26:35 GMT
Testicles are an excellent dish.
In France, they are generally sliced and floured and then gently cooked in butter and white wine with salt and pepper.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 3, 2009 18:25:47 GMT
I was given bull testicles once. I'm pretty sure it was a reward for all the chuckles I provided when I asked in the open market what those objects were.
I can't remember how I fixed them, although I've eaten them as a bar snack. If I ever get any more, I would try the French method, since I was never thrilled by the texture in any of the ways I've tried them.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 3, 2009 18:33:20 GMT
Oh ~~ just realized this thread might be a good place to post this meat group portrait, although I don't really consider tripe or trotters odd food. (any excuse to show off a photo!)  |
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Post by hwinpp on Nov 4, 2009 7:51:10 GMT
How about sheep brain? Does anybody still eat brain? I haven't had it in ages, used to mix the brains with eggs and make a kind of omelet.
In Turkey I once had them just boiled and sprinkled with pepper and lemon juice.
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Post by existentialcrisis on Nov 4, 2009 9:06:38 GMT
I'm pretty open minded when it comes to trying new foods, and I will try the testicles. But I think I have a real fear of tripe and brains...
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Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2009 10:09:47 GMT
Brains have become really hard to find ever since the mad cow business. I found some lambs' brains at the frozen food store about a year ago, but I haven't seen any since.
You sautée them in butter and garlic and serve them with capers. The jiggly feeling in your mouth can be somewhat disconcerting, so it is best to swallow them fast.
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Post by existentialcrisis on Nov 4, 2009 10:36:47 GMT
Then why eat them? Do they at least taste good?
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Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2009 10:39:55 GMT
They are delicious.
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Post by hwinpp on Nov 4, 2009 10:47:39 GMT
Yes, I like them too. Powdered then fried nicely dark golden brown.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2009 11:08:19 GMT
I was never able to get enthusiastic when I would see my mother or my grandmother sucking the brains out of a rabbit head, however.
But when you think of it, it is quite similar to eating bone marrow, which quite a few people like.
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 4, 2009 16:15:33 GMT
I'm pretty omnivorous, but don't really care for the texture of bone marrow. I've never had any desire to try brains, which is close-minded of me.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 6:08:01 GMT
Maybe if you could grow some corn smut on them first...
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 5, 2009 8:07:16 GMT
It's corn smut.
I'd need the brains from an animal with a smutty little mind.
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Post by imec on Nov 5, 2009 13:39:57 GMT
OK, corn smut, stomach lining, brain sucking... can someone please move this to food abominations?
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Post by bixaorellana on Nov 5, 2009 16:45:51 GMT
The point is, Imec, all this stuff tastes good!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 18:53:03 GMT
The point is, Imec, all this stuff tastes good! why don't we just start a thread called De Gustibus Non Est Disputandum? |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2009 19:47:03 GMT
I started a very controversial thread on Fodor's explaining finally that the French expression is "à chacun son goût" and not what most anglophones seem to think, "chacun a son goût" which is what Robbie Williams has tattooed on his chest.
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