What Tlayuda means
Tlayuda is a Mexican antojito name of Nahuatl origin meaning "large crisp tortilla". It comes from tlaōlli (shelled maize). It is pronounced tlah-YOO-dah, and it is most associated with Oaxaca.
Etymology uncertain. The derivation from tlaōlli is repeated everywhere but carries a citation-needed tag even in Spanish Wikipedia, and Wiktionary lists the etymology as missing.
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.
Tlayuda 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.
