Edible Mushroom Foraging in Cuajimoloyas

Just a short drive from Oaxaca City, the air changes. It feels cooler, crisper, and cleaner. The road winds upward through pine forests until you reach Cuajimoloyas, one of the Pueblos Mancomunados, a group of Zapotec villages in the Sierra Norte. At more than 3,000 meters, this mountain community sits within one of Mexico’s richest and least disturbed cloud forests.

Here, mushrooms are more than food. They are part of culture and identity. The Sierra Norte is home to over 2,500 species of fungi, at least 50 of them edible. Zapotec families have foraged these forests for generations, using mushrooms for food, medicine, and ritual.

Marta, our local guide, carried this knowledge with ease. She knew each variety by sight, smell, and season. After a fresh rain, the forest floor glistened with possibilities. Sometimes Marta quietly pointed to a patch of grass, letting us pull back the blades to reveal a hidden mushroom. The group cheered as if we had made the discovery, though it was really her guidance that made it possible. By the end of the morning, our baskets held 17 edible varieties. Marta reminded us to harvest with care, leaving some behind so the forest could renew itself.

Back in her small firewood-run kitchen, the day’s work turned into lunch. We took turns grinding corn masa on the heavy metate. It was awkward in our hands, effortless in hers. Soon the mushrooms hit the comal, folded into warm tortillas, and became quesadillas as earthy and fresh as the mountain air around us.

The whole experience felt grounding. In a village with little tourism and strong traditions, cooking what we had just foraged tied us directly to the land. It was more than a meal, it was a glimpse into a way of life that endures through knowledge, stewardship, and community.