5Jan

Making tamales

TAMALES

Ingredients:

500g Tamale masa/corn flour – make sure it is the type suitable for tamales! 250g solid vegetable shortening
250ml liquid vegetable stock
Corn husks
Salt
Plus whatever fillings you decide to use!

Makes approximately ten tamales/serves three or four people

Instructions:

For the dough/masa

In a large bowl or saucepan, soak corn husks in very hot water for about 5 minutes
In an electric mixer, use the flat beater/dough hook attachment at a high speed to soften the shortening for a few minutes until it is very smooth
Reduce speed and add the Tamale flour
Slowly pour in the vegetable stock and add the salt
If needed, add some extra water to get the right consistency in the dough. You want the dough to be sticky but not too sloppy

To make the tamales

Take a softened corn husk and spread approximately two tablespoons of dough in a flattened patty in the centre
Add your fillings (approximately 1 tablespoon) on top
Gently roll the edges of the corn husk over the fillings and fold the end over to enclose
Tie the tamal together either with strips of corn husk or pieces of string

Cooking instructions

Steam the tamales either in a pressure cooker or a traditional steamer. In a pressure cooker, they will take approximately 30 minutes or 11⁄2 hours in a traditional steamer.
Once cooked, allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before opening – they will be very hot inside!

Filling suggestions

In Mexico, tamales are filled with a seemingly endless combination of ingredients, but common vegan tamales are:

Spinach and huitlacoche (a type of edible corn fungus)
Mushroom and salsa verde
Black beans with salsa verde and vegan cheese

Note – this is a recipe for savoury tamales but sweet tamales are also very popular. This requires a sweetened dough so look out for a future video for sweet tamales!