Tamale Makin' Day

The last time I made tamales was in 2019. Those were jalapeno and cream cheese, my favorite. Today I assembled traditional pork tamales with red chili sauce.

If you've been following along, you may remember I spent a few years in Texas. I'm not a huge fan of TexMex, but I developed a liking for Chili Rellenos, Huevos Rancheros, and... TAMALES!

Chili Rellenos
Deep fried stuffed peppers

Huevos rancheros
goopy eggs slathered with salsa roja

Tamales are expensive, so I taught myself to make them from scratch. It's time-consuming, but what a pleasure to take a few out and heat them up for lunch.

So I started with a boneless pork shoulder roast, cut it up in chunks and cooked on low in a slow cooker with water and an onion til it was fall-apart tender (a few hours at least).

After it cooled, I shredded it and added  jar of garlic chili paste I found in the pantry, but be creative and make red chili sauce, or spice it up any way you like. End of day one.  Save the broth! 

Second day I made the masa. It's best to use lard, which I was going to purchase, but remembered I keep some with my soap-making supplies. (hmm time to make  more soon!) Whip  about 2 cups of the lard til fluffy (a long time).

 

Mix 4 C  masa, a tsp of baking powder and Tbsp of salt and add it to the lard, alternating with a cup or so of the saved pork broth and mix to the consistency of peanut butter. You can season it to your liking, such as garlic, herbs, paprika, etc.

Add masa and broth alternately

Looks like peanut butter

 

If a drop of dough floats in water, it's ready. 

Soak the corn husks in hot water til soft.

Now it's ready to assemble.

Dry off a corn husk with a towel. Spread masa evenly onto corn husk. I can't find my masa spreader so I used a spoon. Spread filling over masa and bring the sides together with masa meeting. 

 

Roll and tie. 

Stand them up in a tall pot over a steamer basket, first putting a penny under the steamer basket. If it rattles, add more water. 

Add water til it comes to the bottom of the basket. Cover, boil, then turn low to steam for a couple hours. If the husk releases from the masa after it has cooled, it's done. 

Yummy

Late night snack