Tamales in New England can be as rare as a truly warm, sunny day. As popular as traditional Mexican food has become over the last half century, with suitable imitations popping up all over the Atlantic seaboard, many - most - have yet to try and learn how to make the culinary delight that is the tamale. I can't really blame them. Tamales can be very labor intensive, which makes them almost pointless to make save for the reward that comes from making a good meal from scratch and keeping up a tradition that may well die out in the years to come. It is a lot of work to make them for a single evening's meal and is best to just throw yourself into the fray and make enough tamales to last until Christmas; if you are a restaurant, well, why put yourself through the torture unless you have a crackerjack prep crew or a gaggle of relatives that could serve as your own highly esteemed sweat shop?
Yesterday was just such a day. I decided to make tamales for dinner last night which, due to the work involved, required mentally preparing through the previous week and then scouting out particular items needed from local ethnic markets. Thank God for Trans World Food Market. They had the dry corn husks that I needed to tightly wrap the dough and filling in.
I haven't made tamales in about ten years, when we made them for a limited run special at Daddy-O's Bohemian Café. Before that, it had been about twenty years since, when my mom would get the sudden urge to make homemade tamales and I would help out.
So, then - without further ado yet much further a dough (sorry, I can't resist a really bad pun, even if it falls flat in print) - here is the game plan for making tamales.
Dried Corn Husks - use plenty to cover your needs, approximately 2-3 each
Soak the Corn Husks over night in water, then drain in a colander. Leave them moist so that they remain pliable to fold, spindle or mutilate. Yes, it will be OK.
Filling:
2 Lbs. of Meat or other filling - I used Pork in this one
1 medium Onion, chopped
3 Bay Leaves
1 Tb. + Olive Oil
1 Tb. of Mexican Sazón Spice Seasoning (or some other similarly awesome seasoning)
1 tsp. Smoked Paprika
1 Tb. Tomato Paste
Plenty of water
Plenty of water
Salt
Pepper
In a large skillet add the olive oil and bring to medium - medium high heat. Season the pork with your seasoning, smoked paprika, salt and pepper and then gently place them in the skillet so that they don't splatter hot oil on you. Sear each side until they are browned, add the chopped onions and cook them until translucent and then add enough water to just cover them. Add the bay leaves and bring to a boil, then return the heat to medium low, cover and let cook for approximately two to three hour, occasionally checking the water level to make sure that the meat stays covered. At any point after an hour or two you can add the tomato paste. Just make sure that the water doesn't thicken too much from it or reduce. If it does, add more water. You only want the water to be a little thick. After an couple of hours the meat will soften and easily fall apart to the touch. At this point go ahead and shred the meat and mix it all together.
Dough:
1 Lb. (4 Cups) of Masa Harina (Yellow Corn Flour)
3+ Cups of Water
1/4 Lb. Butter or Shortening (or 1/8 Lb. of each)
3 Tb. Sugar
1 tsp. Salt
Place the corn flour in a large, dry flat skillet or pan and turn the heat to medium. You want to lightly toast the flour to bring out the flavor of the corn, so carefully stir it as it is warming up. Remove the corn flour to a large bowl. You can use the pan to make the masa dough if it is large enough to hold double or triple the amount of the corn flour. Place the butter or shortening in the pan with 3 cups of water, sugar and salt, then bring it to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium and gradually stir in the corn flour, adding more water as needed, The mixture should be well incorporated, without clumps of flour, and should be pliable to use, like Play-Doh.
Making the Tamales:
Using a clean flat surface, such as a counter top if your kitchen happens to have one (most good houses come with them these days, making it convenient and without the hassle of renting one for special occasions), lay out two or three good sized corn husks. They should be damp but not wet. Try layering them one half way over the other, making sure there is enough room to spread out approximately 1/4 cup of dough into a 4" x 7" rectangle. Then place 1/4 cup of dough and spread it with a spatula, a fork, your fingers - whatever you have handy - until it makes a 4" x 7" rectangle with the dough about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick. Place 1/2 to 2 Tbs. of filling lengthwise in the center, leaving a border of dough around it. Gently fold the sides of the corn husks up so that the dough covers the filling. I found that it worked best to turn the sides up first to form the shape of the tamale, then wrap one side of the corn husk over first, then the other side; next fold the ends over and then lay the tamale down upon the folded sides. You can leave them that way if you prefer - the weight of the tamale should be enough to hold it closed in place while you cook them - but the traditional way is to tie them like a package using string or thin strips of corn husk. Don't worry if you have problems folding them into a rectangular package shape. The dough should mold to the form of the corn husk as you fold it into place. If they come out on the small side, that's OK also - you'll just have to serve extra!
Cooking your Tamales:
You will need a pot capable of steaming food and large enough to hold the amount of tamales you wish to cook. We don't actually have one, so I place a 9" round cooling rack in our large braising pot, and it works fine.
Place the tamales evenly on the steamer tray with enough water to cover the bottom under it. Cover the pot and bring the water to boiling, then lower it to medium/ medium low. The tamales shouldn't take long to cook - about 20 to 30 minutes.
Serve hot with your favorite sauce and salsa. Might I recommend Roasted Tomatillo Sauce, Spicy Guacamole and Chipotle Salsa?
Suggestions:
You can add grated cheese to the filling or directly on top of your tamales. Add sour cream, diced chili peppers or anything else that you are prone to placing on top of tacos, nachos or other Mexican food. Have a beer or two. Cut loose & go crazy - who knows when you are going to get the urge to make tamales again. Just be sure to make plenty and share them with your family and friends.
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