What Tlacoyo means
Tlacoyo is a Mexican antojito name of Nahuatl origin meaning "stuffed masa patty". It comes from tlahtlaōyoh (something made of ground maize). It is pronounced tlah-KOH-yoh, and it is most associated with central Mexico.
Etymology uncertain. The word is plainly Nahuatl and is usually traced to a form built on tlaōlli, shelled maize, but the source word is not attested in the colonial dictionaries.
About this origin. The etymology is uncertain, disputed, or the name is a modern brand rather than an old word. The reading above is the best-supported one; food writing repeats stories that the dictionaries do not confirm.
Tlacoyo is one of the many Mexican food words formed in Nahuatl. Spanish borrowed it, and in several cases English borrowed it again from Spanish. See how Nahuatl builds words and the full list of Mexican food names.
This is a site about what Mexican words mean, so there is no recipe here. For the name itself: Antojito means "little craving". These are the masa-based street foods named for their shape more often than their filling: a sope is a small mound, a huarache is a sandal, a gordita is a fat little one, a tlacoyo is an oval patty.
