Mexican corn cakes with barbacoa

Easy, pan-fried Mexican corn cakes piled high with barbacoa, avocado, and pickled onions are a delicious alternative to tacos.

Once upon a time, my little Eclair would cry at the sight of a taco. I’d put a taco in front of her and the waterworks would start. But thanks to my persistence and the influence of her older (by one day) and more adventurous best friend, she gave them another try. And miracle of miracles, she likes them. She is quite particular with the preparation: it must be a flour tortilla with meat, preferably beef of some kind, but she will eat carnitas. She then piles it with a ridiculous amount of cheese (quesadilla perhaps?) and tomatoes. That’s it. But no complaints here since she happily munches away on her taco (and did I mention she doesn’t like tomatoes unless they are on a taco?)

All of this of course means I no longer have to prep an alternative meal for her when we have tacos. And we eat a lot of tacos. So this week, I decided to give the tortillas a break and make these Mexican corn cakes. Masa, corn, and some cotija cheese come together in a simple dough that is pressed into cakes and pan-fried. I had some barbacoa in the freezer, so we topped the cakes with that, along with all the usual fixings, including a generous helping of pickled onions. The result: hubby said it was the best Mexican dinner I’d ever made. It made plenty for two meals and these little corn cakes are much more filling than a tortilla, so make a batch and have them twice or invite some friends over for your next not-quite-taco Tuesday.

Mexican corn cakes with barbacoa

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Easy, pan-fried Mexican corn cakes piled high with barbacoa, avocado, and pickled onions are a great alternative to tacos.

Author: Erin Berdan

Recipe type: Main

Cuisine: Mexican

Serves: 4-6 servings

Ingredients

For the corn cakes:

• 1½ cups masa harina or cornmeal
• ½ cup flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. Kosher salt
• ½ cup grated cotija cheese (or feta if you can't find cotija)
• 2 cups chopped fresh or frozen corn kernels
• 1 cup warm water
• ¼ cup canola oil

To serve

• 2 cups barbacoa, carnitas or other meat of your choice
• Pickles onions
• Chopped tomato
• Sour cream
• Hot sauce
• Sliced avocado
• Cilantro sprigs
• Crumbled cotija or queso fresco

Instructions

1. Whisk together the masa harina, flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Stir in the cheese and corn kernels.
2. Add the water, ¼ cup at a time, until the mixture just holds together. You may not need the full cup.
3. Heat oil in a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Press ⅓ cup of the corn mixture into a cake about ½ -inch thick. I used a ring mold to make it easier.
4. Working in batches, fry the cakes until golden, about 4 to 5 minutes per side. Add more oil to the pan if needed. Set cooked cakes on parchment and keep warm while you cook the remaining cakes.
5. To serve, place cakes on plate and top with some of the meat.
6. Top with remaining toppings according to your taste and serve immediately.

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