Tarahumara Mushrooms and Chiles

A taste of the sky islands of Chihuahua

Mushrooms play a significant role in Mexican cuisine, especially wild mushrooms, called hongos. The country is a haven for all sorts of species that range from the jungles of Chiapas and Yucatan to the arid deserts of the north.

Yep, you read that right. Deserts. But don’t look for mushrooms in the flats. They’re up high, in the sky islands above the desert floor, often at altitudes higher than 9000 feet. It’s the same basic mushroom array and culture as in Arizona and New Mexico, which can get excellent mushroom flushes after summertime monsoon rains.

The Tarahumara, also known as the Raramuri, are an indigenous group living in the Mexican state of Chihuahua, known mostly as skilled distance runners who rely on chia seeds for energy.

They are also skilled cooks, and make wide use of the monsoon mushrooms. This guisado, or stew, is one of those dishes. I found it in a rare cookbook called La Milpa Raramuri en las Gorditas Chihuahuenses that I bought in the city of Chihuahua.