My friend Sandra lives in Spokane and comes to the West side of the state frequently to visit her daughter and grand-kids, who happen to live next door to me. I somehow managed to talk Sandra into showing me how to make tamales - homemade tamales are nothing like the tasteless things you get in most restaurants...and Sandra's tamales were the best I have ever had! I had such a good time making tamales with Sandra that when I flew to SLC last week I made them again for my family and I had a little help from the nieces, who were thrilled to do forced manual labor! That's Callie on the left, she is always smiling and her sister Gracie, on the right, is a growly-bear...but we love her anyway! Those two smeared the masa mixture onto about 70 corn husks and topped them with a mixture of chopped spinach, tomatillos, jalapenos, cilantro, green chilies, onion, cooked chicken and cheese...a little fiesta all rolled up in a corn husk!
When Sandra and I made tamales we used prepared Masa, which is found in the refrigerated section of some Hispanic markets, it look like a big bag of dough/turkey breast, pictured on the left. (The mister, who had to atone for his latest foible, was my masa errand boy and he had to go all the way to Kent to find a market that sold prepared masa! He was not amused.) We couldn't find any prepared masa in SLC so I used the dry stuff, mixed it with water, a little baking powder and lard and beat it until it was light and fluffy with enough air whipped into it so when a small piece of dough was dropped into a glass of water it floated - that's how you know it's good to go!
While I cracked the whip, my little worker bees filled the corn husks until the masa was gone, sneaking bites of the filling when they thought I wasn't looking - who could blame them, it was dang good! Once the tamales were made, we put them into a large pan that had wadded up aluminum foil in the bottom to keep the tamales above the water line, and then they were steamed. Since we were steaming so many at a time it took about 40 minutes or so until they were done.
That's half of the tamales we made in the pot! We ate some, gave some to mom's neighbor, my sister took some home and we froze the rest; after cooking they freeze really well and can be reheated easily in the microwave or they can be re-steamed.
Just look at that perfect tamale! Steamed to perfection so the masa holds the filling tightly inside! We ate ours with my sister's homemade salsa (her recipe coming soon) and some fresh guacamole. They were so good...so, so, so, so good! I think I'm going to try to earn myself a Tamale Maker Badge or something because I know I'll be making these again and again - maybe even for the big game on Sunday! I had so much fun making them, thanks Sandra! And my nieces definitely had fun making AND eating them! Get a few friends or family members together and make up a couple hundred...it's fun, easy and they are absoposilutely delicious!
HomemadeTamales - Pots and Pins - Adapted From Sandra Carter, Tamale Expert
(Since prepared masa is hard to find I'm going to give you the ingredients and directions for dry masa. If you find prepared masa and want to use it, you still have to beat it with a little lard and baking powder until a small piece floats in water - but I don't have those exact measurements for you - you'd have to wing it.)
4 cups masa
4 cups water, or chicken broth
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 lb. lard (comes in a 1 lb. block)
1/2 bunch spinach or Swiss chard, finely chopped
1 bunch cilantro, finely chopped
1 bunch green onion, finely diced
2 jalapenos, seeded, finely diced (if you want more heat leave in some of the seeds)
4 tomatillos, finely diced
2 cans (4 oz.) mild green chilies
1 lbs. shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
salt and pepper to taste
1 to 2 teaspoons cumin, or more, to taste
2 lbs. diced chicken (I purchased a 4 lb. package of rotisserie chicken from Costco)
1 package corn husks (Available at most large grocery stores, Safeway carries them, and Hispanic markets. The package I purchased had 100 husks, we used about 65.)
You will also need a very large pan, aluminum foil, and tongs.
Fill a clean sink with water (or a large pot) and submerge the corn husks; soaking them will make them soft and able to fold and bend. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the masa, water/broth, baking powder, salt, pepper and lard and beat for about 3 to 4 minutes, until well combined. Fill a small glass with water and drop about a teaspoon of the masa mixture into the glass, if it floats it is done, if it sinks, keep beating for 2 or 3 more minutes and then try again. When a teaspoon of the mixture floats it's ready to spread.
In a large bowl, combine the spinach, cilantro, green onion, jalapeno, tomatillos, green chilies, and about 3/4's of the Monterey Jack cheese. Mix in salt, pepper and cumin to taste. Mix in chicken. Set aside.
To make the tamales: Take a corn husk and if it's wider than about 5-inches, tear off the extra, you don't want the husk to go around and around and around, just one time around is enough. Spread a thin layer of masa, about a little less than 1/4-inch, over the top 2/3's of the husk, from side to side, and stopping 1/3 up from the narrow end. On top of the masa put about 2 tablespoons of the filling, spreading down the center, top to bottom, and then roll the sides of the husk up and over the filling. Fold the bottom 1/3 up and pinch the top to seal. Make all the tamales.
To steam the tamales: In a very large pot, add about 3-inches of water. Crumple up enough aluminum foil to keep the tamales above the water level. If you have a steamer basket, great! I do not - so the crumpled aluminum foil works great. Please tamales in the pot on top of the crumpled foil, folded end down. Cover with tight-fitting lid, bring water to a boil, then reduce heat to low and steam tamales for about 30 minutes. Take one of the tamales out with the tongs and check it to see if the masa is cooked. When they're done the masa will be firm and will easily peel away from the husk. If it's not quite done, put it back in the pot and continue steaming for another 5 minutes. Makes about 30 to 35 tamales, depending on how big they are. Serve with salsa, guacamole and/or sour cream.
