What do cuchamas taste like?

Cuchamas have a herbal, earthy and slightly citrusy flavour, with notes of green huizache leaves. When toasted they acquire a toasted-nut aftertaste and a smoky touch from cooking on the comal. Their texture is crisp and similar to a grasshopper, but with a more vegetal and less spicy aromatic profile.

How are cuchamas prepared?

They are purged in salted water and slowly roasted on the comal to remove the urticating bristles. They are then served whole in tacos with green salsa, avocado and fresh cheese, or ground in molcajete with chile pasilla, garlic and tomato to make cuchama salsa, which accompanies broad-bean tlacoyos and memelas in the Tehuacán Valley region.

When are cuchamas harvested?

The harvest season is very short, between late June and mid-July, when the caterpillars reach their last instar after the first rains. The harvest is done at dawn, by hand, by entire families of the Popoloca, Mazatec and Mixtec peoples of the Puebla-Oaxaca semi-arid region.

Where do cuchamas come from?

They are native to the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley, on the border between Puebla and Oaxaca, one of the areas with the greatest biodiversity and cultural diversity in Mexico. Their harvest is traditional among Popoloca, Mazatec, Chinantec and Mixtec peoples, and is associated with the agricultural cycle of the huizache and mesquite of the semi-desert.

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Cuchamas: edible caterpillars of the Valley of Tehuacán

What is it?

Cuchamas are edible caterpillars of the moth Paradirphia fumosa, collected in the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley and mountain areas of Puebla and Oaxaca. They live in huizache (Vachellia farnesiana), mesquite and pirul trees, feeding on their leaves and tender stems. The harvest season is very short, between late June and mid-July, coinciding with the first summer rains. They are brown with bristles and measure up to 6 cm in their last instar. Their flavour is herbal, earthy and slightly citrusy, with an aftertaste of green leaves. They are prepared toasted on a comal with salt and lime, in tacos with freshly made tortillas, or ground in molcajete salsa with chile pasilla and tomato. For the Popoloca, Mazatec and Mixtec peoples of the Puebla-Oaxaca semi-arid region, they are a key nutritional source and a symbol of the diversity of Mexican entomophagy.

Origin and history

The consumption of cuchamas is ethnographically documented among the Popoloca, Chinantec, Mazatec and Mixtec peoples of the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley, one of the regions with the greatest cultural and biological diversity in Mexico. The journal Etnobiología and CONABIO report that their collection is built into the agricultural and ritual calendar since pre-Hispanic times. Although they do not appear under that name in colonial sources such as Sahagún's, various edible caterpillars of the huizache are mentioned in the Natural History of Francisco Hernández (1577). In the 20th century, anthropologist Julieta Ramos-Elorduy and ethnobiologist Robert Bye, both of UNAM, catalogued them as a critical ethnobiological resource. México Desconocido highlights their use in patronal festivities such as that of Carmen in Tehuacán and San Pedro and San Pablo in Coxcatlán. The Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Biosphere Reserve, declared Mixed World Heritage by UNESCO in 2018, protects the ecosystems that sustain their sustainable harvest.

Characteristic ingredients

Paradirphia fumosa is a nocturnal moth of the Saturniidae family, endemic to the semi-arid regions of Mexico. Its caterpillars gather in groups on huizache and mesquite, forming defoliating colonies during June and July. The caterpillar is dark brown with urticating bristles that must be removed before consumption through a process of toasting or roasting on a comal. They are purged in salted water, slowly roasted until the bristles fall off and then served in tacos with green salsa, avocado and fresh cheese. Cuchama salsa is made by grinding the toasted caterpillars in a molcajete with chile pasilla, garlic, tomato and salt, served with memelas and broad-bean tlacoyos. Nutritional studies from the Autonomous University of Puebla report a protein content of 45-55% by dry weight, with the presence of iron, magnesium, phosphorus and essential amino acids. Some communities make tamales filled with cuchamas wrapped in avocado leaf for patronal festivities.

Cultural significance

Cuchamas are a key piece of the gastronomic heritage of the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Reserve, inscribed on the UNESCO Mixed World Heritage representative list in 2018, which explicitly recognises traditional knowledge on the use of edible insects. They form part of the Traditional Mexican Cuisine dossier declared Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010. The Cuchama Fair in San Sebastián Zinacatepec, Puebla, celebrates the harvest season every July, with salsa and tamale contests and tastings. Researchers from CIIDIR-Oaxaca document semi-controlled rearing as an alternative to reduce pressure on wild populations. Contemporary cuisine, led by chefs such as Édgar Núñez of Sud 777 and Alejandro Ruiz at Casa Oaxaca, has incorporated cuchamas into tasting menus, contributing to their national revaluation as one of the jewels of Mexican entomophagy.

Related recipes

Now that you know what it is, try cooking it at home with our step-by-step recipes:

We are preparing recipes for this guide. Check back soon.

Frequently asked questions

What do cuchamas taste like?: Cuchamas have a herbal, earthy and slightly citrusy flavour, with notes of green huizache leaves. When toasted they acquire a toasted-nut aftertaste and a smoky touch from cooking on the comal. Their texture is crisp and similar to a grasshopper, but with a more vegetal and less spicy aromatic profile.
How are cuchamas prepared?: They are purged in salted water and slowly roasted on the comal to remove the urticating bristles. They are then served whole in tacos with green salsa, avocado and fresh cheese, or ground in molcajete with chile pasilla, garlic and tomato to make cuchama salsa, which accompanies broad-bean tlacoyos and memelas in the Tehuacán Valley region.
When are cuchamas harvested?: The harvest season is very short, between late June and mid-July, when the caterpillars reach their last instar after the first rains. The harvest is done at dawn, by hand, by entire families of the Popoloca, Mazatec and Mixtec peoples of the Puebla-Oaxaca semi-arid region.
Where do cuchamas come from?: They are native to the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley, on the border between Puebla and Oaxaca, one of the areas with the greatest biodiversity and cultural diversity in Mexico. Their harvest is traditional among Popoloca, Mazatec, Chinantec and Mixtec peoples, and is associated with the agricultural cycle of the huizache and mesquite of the semi-desert.