Good Tamale Recipes?

[bananacake]

Subject says it all

Hire one lil' ol' Mexican woman.
Gather a pile of mesquite wood for fire.
Go to tortillaria and pick up masa for the sweet lady.

That's my recipe and I challenge you to find one that yields better tamales.

[bananacake]

OK, maybe I should entitle this: A Good Tamale Recipe from someone who has no access to a small Mexican women

[Hermana Linda]

I usually find a Salvadoran to make them for me. Salvy tamales are my favorite.

---------- Post added at 03:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:58 PM ----------

The thing is that Tamales (both Salvy and Mexican) are really labor intensive and are usually made in very large quantities for sale or large gatherings. Here's a recipe which makes only 12. btw, Masa harina is usually purchased as Maseca.

---------- Post added at 03:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:04 PM ----------

Here's a recipe for Mexican Tamales.

I need to find a Salvadoran to see if Hermana Linda wins.

Oh, banana, you didn't mention whether you were looking for "normal" tamales or Veracruz-style. I detest Veracruz-style, fwiw.

[bananacake]

I don't know what I want I bought some corn flour and thought I might make tamales because they cost $1.25 a piece at T Joes!
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---------- Post added at 05:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:42 PM ----------

And I'm fine with making them in large quantities if you think they'll freeze OK. We have a bamboo steamer contraption.
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[racheepoo]

They freeze great. I make them at Christmas in huge batches and they last around here until about Marchish. Wasband's g-gma from Mexico taught me, so whether it's authentic or not, the recipe's good enough for them

[Hermana Linda]

So, where's the recipe? :tappingfoot

[ncsweetpea]

Originally Posted by Mama Calidad

Hire one lil' ol' Mexican woman.
Gather a pile of mesquite wood for fire.
Go to tortillaria and pick up masa for the sweet lady.

That's my recipe and I challenge you to find one that yields better tamales.

You could start an international business with a post as enticing as that! My search for a real tamale sent me into labor in May!

[racheepoo]

It's in my Christmas cookbook, which is in storage until Thanksgiving

Originally Posted by bananacake

I don't know what I want I bought some corn flour and thought I might make tamales because they cost $1.25 a piece at T Joes!

Regular tamales are wrapped in corn husks. Veracruz-style are wrapped (perhaps more appropriately for you) in banana leaves.

Originally Posted by racheepoo

They freeze great. I make them at Christmas in huge batches and they last around here until about Marchish. Wasband's g-gma from Mexico taught me, so whether it's authentic or not, the recipe's good enough for them

It's at least as authentic as Trader Joes.

[me]

I follow the masa recipe on the Maseca bag. But I use chicken broth for the water and add a little bit of the red chile for color, and more sea salt than called for. The meat I make from scratch. Nothing specific. Make the meat like a roast. Shred it. Then take dried red chilies. Wash and deseed. Put them in a blender with garlic, salt, and hot water. Blend to desired consistency. Then add the red chile to the meat.
You can roll them in foil if you dont have corn husks. Just leave the top open. Cover the tamales with soaked husks or a wet towel when steaming. Put a penny in your water so you can hear if the water level goes down.
you can apply those tips to just about any recipe and they'll be yummy.

[bananacake]

Originally Posted by Mama Calidad

Regular tamales are wrapped in corn husks. Veracruz-style are wrapped (perhaps more appropriately for you) in banana leaves.

T Joe's are in corn husks!

[Hermana Linda]

Salvy tamales are in banana leaves.

[bananacake]

Is there something special I need to do to the corn husks?