A great chef once told me that if a recipe isn’t working out, then take an ingredient out. The lesson being, that if you’re using fresh, wholesome ingredients, simple is almost always better. That’s why most of my cooking tends to be simple. But as with any rule, there are always exceptions.
French pastries are delectable, yet require an enormous amount of effort. Whether it’s my laziness or my lack of experience in the pastry arts, I prefer buying pastries prepared for me by an expert, rather than do something crazy like tackle an opera cake myself.
Tamales are another exception to the simple is better rule as they require an immense amount of prep-work to make. While the slacker in me would love to just go out and buy them, the ones from stores and restaurants (yes even if you live in a border state) are a far cry from the airy masa-wrapped delights that I’ve had in the past.
When I was a student at UC Davis, there was a tamale lady at the farmer’s market that had delightfully light tamales with a sweet and tangy sauce. The first time I had one of her tamales it made me realize why people loved these giant dumplings with such fervor. Like a gambling addict, I’ve been hooked ever since and I toss the dice and order tamales whenever I see them on a menu.
Unfortunately I can only count a handful of times when I’ve been happy with the tamale I’ve ordered. Dense, leathery, and tasting of old meat, I usually find myself swearing off store bought tamales for good. Still, it doesn’t take me long to forget the long odds and I inevitably set myself up for disappointment every time I dine at a Mexican restaurant.
Recently I decided that enough was enough, and I set out to make my own perfect tamale. It took me a whole day to make, but trust me on this one, it’s worth the effort. The filling strikes the perfect balance between rich and tangy, savory and sweet, with a slow heat that builds with each mouthful, and despite containing over a cup of lard, the corn masa is impossibly light and fluffy. Draped with a fresh tomato and chili salsa, this steamed corn dumpling embodies all the things that I love in a great tamale.
To get there, I started by braising a pork shoulder with aromatics and spices until the meat was fall-apart tender. Then I used the resulting pork stock, along with dried Guajillo and Pasilla chiles to make the mole. The chiles are spicy but are really there more to impart their sweet fragrance rather than provide face-melting heat. Together with the pork, caramelized onions, and herbs, the sauce and meat have layers of orchestra-like complexity that will make everyone at the table utter a deep “Mmmmm” as their mouths close around their first bite.
For the masa, I used the recipe on the side of the package (Maseca brand), but instead of water, I used the remaining pork stock to rehydrate the flour. This adds enough flavor that you could really just steam the masa by itself without any filling at all. The most important thing though is to use a stand mixer to whip the lard, this incorporates a ton of air, which is what gives the finished tamale such a light texture.
By the way, these tamales also work really well filled with a batch of my chile verde recipe. The process for the masa is basically the same, but you won’t have the braising liquid, so you can use something like chicken stock.
Units
Ingredients
For filling
- 1 large onion (sliced crosswise into 3 rounds)
- 4 large cloves garlic
- 1 jalapeño pepper
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1.4 kilograms pork shoulder
- 60 grams dried Pasilla chilies
- 60 grams dried guajillo chiles
- 1 carrot
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 5 cloves
- 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander seed
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 large onions (minced)
- 3 large cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
- 400 grams whole stewed tomatoes
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander seed
For tamales
- 1 package hoja de maíz para tamale (dried corn husks)
- 4 cups masa harina para tamales
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ⅓ cups manteca (lard)
- 3 ½ – 4 cups reserved pork stock (cooled to room temperature)
For sauce
- 2 large tomatoes
Instructions
- Place the onion, garlic and jalapeño in a single layer on a baking sheet. Move your oven rack to the top position and turn the broiler on. Place the baking sheet in the oven and broil until the tops of the onion, garlic and jalapeño are black. Flip them over and broil until the other side is charred as well.
- Meanwhile, add the vegetable oil to a heavy bottomed pot that’s just wide enough to accommodate the pork shoulder. Heat on high until the oil is shimmering. Add the pork shoulder and press it down to ensure there’s good contact between the meat and the pot. Let this fry undisturbed until the bottom is nice and brown (about 5-7 minutes). Flip the pork over and brown the other side.
- Once both sides of the pork are browned, add the charred onion, garlic and jalapeño. Wipe 1 Pasilla chili and 1 Guajillo chili and add them to the pot as well as the carrot, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, cloves, Mexican oregano, ground coriander and salt. Pour enough water into the pot so that the pork is submerged by 1″ (about 5 cups). Bring to a boil and skim off any scum that floats to the top.
- Cover the pot with a lid and let it simmer over medium low heat until the pork falls apart when prodded with a fork (about 2-3 hours).
- Transfer the pork to a bowl, then strain the braising liquid through a strainer and set the pork stock aside. We’re going to use this for both the mole and the masa.
- To make the mole sauce, wipe the remaining Guajillo and Pasilla chiles with a damp paper towel, then trim the tops off the of the chiles with a pair of scissors. Use the scissors to cut down the length of each chile so you can open it up. Remove the seeds and light colored membranes, and lay the chilies flat on a baking sheet.
- Roast the chiles in a 350 degree oven for a few minutes until you can smell the sweet fragrance of the peppers. This brings out the flavor of the chiles, but be careful not to burn them as they will get bitter.
- Put the roasted chiles in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Allow them to rehydrate for 10-15 minutes, then scoop the chiles out, discarding the soaking liquid.
- Add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to a frying pan and add the minced onions and garlic. Fry over medium low heat until the onions are fully caramelized (about 40 minutes). Turn off the heat and allow the onions to cool.
- Add the sesame seeds to the bowl of a food processor and process until they are finely ground. Add the drained chiles along with the canned tomatoes and caramelized onions and run the food processor until smooth.
- With the food processor running add some reserved pork stock 1/4 cup at a time until the mixture is smooth and does not clump anymore, but it is still thick. (you shouldn’t need more than 1 cup). Scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times with a spatula. Add the honey, salt, mexican oregano, ground cumin and ground coriander and continue to process until well incorporated.
- Strain the sauce mixture through a fine mesh sieve or chinois, pressing down on the solids to extract as much sauce as you can.
- Shred the pork with a fork. Measure out 1 cup of the sauce and set it aside (for the topping), then add the remaining sauce to the pork. Stir to combine.
- Rehydrate the corn husks in warm water.
- To make the masa, whisk together the masa harina, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add 3 cups of the reserved pork stock and mix together with clean hands to combine. Keep adding pork stock 1/4 cup at a time, until the mixture is about the consistency of cookie dough.
- Put the Manteca in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, then beat until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes), scraping down the sides of the bowl once ( it will go from translucent to white).
- Turn down the speed of the mixer, then incorporate the masa a little bit at a time. A classic way to test if your masa is light enough is to drop a little ball into a glass of water. It should float on the surface.
- To wrap the tamales, place 1 rehydrated corn husk with the narrow end pointed to the left. Use a spoon or spatula to spread a thin layer of masa all the way to the left, right and bottom edges of the husk, leaving about a quarter of the husk exposed along the top. This space prevents the husk from getting sandwiched in between layers of masa, making the tamales easier to unwrap.
- Place some of the pork filling along the middle of the layer of masa you just laid down, but leave a gap to the left.
- Fold the narrow end of the husk over the filling.
- Finish by folding the bottom flap over the filling, and then folding the top flap over the bottom flap. If you’ve done this successfully you should have a nice rectangular package with 3 sides closed and one side open (with the filling exposed). Place the tamale with the flaps facing down on a baking sheet.
- Once you’ve wrapped all the tamales, prepare a deep pot with a steamer insert by filling the pot with water until the waterline is just below the level of the steamer insert. Place the tamales in the steamer vertically, with the open end facing up.
- Wet a kitchen towel, and cover the pot with the towel before covering it with the lid. This prevents condensation from forming on the lid, which will drip down and maker your tamales watery. Make sure to fold the bits of towel hanging out of the pot over the lid so they do not catch on fire.
- Bring the pot to a boil, then turn down the heat so you can barely see a steady stream of steam escaping. Steam the tamales for 1 1/2 hours. Make sure you check the steamer periodically to make sure you don’t run out of water.
- To make the sauce for the tamales, put the tomatoes in the food processor and process until smooth. Strain the tomato puree through a fine mesh strainer into a small sauce pan. Add the reserved 1 cup of mole sauce to the tomato sauce. Cook the sauce over medium low heat until the sauce is thick and bubbly. You’ll want to stir it frequently to keep it from burning.
- To serve, unwrap your steamed tamales, leaving them on the husks. Cover with the sauce and serve.
- These tamales will keep for about 1 week in the fridge, or for a few months in the freezer. You can re-steam or heat them in the microwave wrapped in a damp paper towel to warm them up.
Nick Kern says
Hello Chef!
Just wanted to say thanks for the awesome recipe. I just posted on your facebook the other day asking where to find masa in Japan and I went to the Tomizowa in Shinjuku. I was unable to find corn husks anywhere, and I don’t have a stand mixer, so they were a little more dense than yours look, BUT I bought a bamboo shoot and used the husks as wrappers. They turned out excellent! I just finished making a lengua mole, all with ingredients found in Japan(except the dried California Chiles), and will be making a huge batch of tamales. I love Tomizowa, I also bought the Hopi Japanese Pinto beans, then refried them which these tamales are stuffed with. Long story short, great recipe as always chef!
Marc Matsumoto says
Sounds awesome! Yea, I’ve never seen corn husks here, but they sell dried bamboo leaves (I think they have them at tomizawa) which work very well as they’re a similar size and shape to corn husks. As for the denseness, people have been making tamales long before electric mixers existed, so it’s possible to get them light, it’s just a matter of getting your fat to room temperature and beating enough air into it using a whisk.
JIWA says
Well, though not a seasoned tamale maker, I have been making them on and off for abut 40 years. I originally learned from my Mexican MIL. This is an on-again year so I went searching for a pork recipe a step above what I have been using. This one looks interesting. I noted that the author was Japanese. It is great how international we have become. I am Canadian. I have never had too much trouble with the masa. I prefer using lard that I render myself. Manteca in the US is full of additives I don’t want. I had never seen a masa recipe using the broth from the pork until this year, and now there are several! For me this is at least a two or three day process. I take my time. I like to cook the pork overnight in my slow-cooker, but have used a pressure cooker and the stove or oven as well over the years. Have you tried “sweet” tamales? I had some decides ago and no one had ever heard of them since. So I have developed my own. Pineapple juice for the broth with a little lime. bits of raisins, coconut, almonds, cinnamon and anise and a little brown sugar (piloncillo) with the lard in the masa. Wrap and steam like regular tamales. Wonderful dessert. I like them plain. Happy cooking.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi JIWA, I’m Japanese, but grew up in California with Mexican friends. Tamales are probably one of my favorite Mexican foods when prepared properly. I’m with you on rendering your own pork fat. You actually get a bit of fat from braising the pork that you can use in the masa as well (though it does turn it an orange color). As for the sweet tamales, it’s called Tamales de Dulces (literally sweet tamales).
JIWA says
Hi Marc:
I guess I didn’t remember “Tamales de Dulces” until you told me. I grew upon No Hollywood in the 60-70’s. Married in late 70’s after college to a Mexican. After learning how to make meat tamales, and hearing about sweet, none of my husband’s family or church family had ever heard of them. And they made tamales monthly to sell as a fund-raiser. Had been since the 1930’s out of that church in Upland, CA. So I figured it out on my own after lots of research. they became quite popular for a while until we moved away. Thanks for your response. I also went wandering on your site. I, too think that the BahnMi is one of the better sandwiches of the world. So much so that I really followed you links and bought “The Bahn Mi Handbook” yesterday. Can’t wait. Of course, if you grew up in the streets of LA, then you are certainly familiar with Mexican street tacos. They are a pretty good version of a sandwich as well–lengua is my favorite version. There is a Catholic Mission in San Juan Capistrano. Close by there used to be a Taco stand–the best!. But I had a lot of really good ones while in nursing school in San Diego as well. So I could wax poetic for ages……
Hot tamale says
Chef Marc, your recipe is right on point. There are many versions of tamales depending on the region of Mexico. Is your recipe from the Oaxaca region? If so, I’ve heard that region makes the best flavor intense tamales. I grew up helping mom and we also make sweet ones every year. When making sweet tamales, you add butter for flavor. The sweet tamales we make only have raisins, crushed pineapple, and Spanish peanuts (skin off…too bitter with them on). My mom is from a region where ingredients are sparse, but we have on occasion added coconut and pecans instead of peanuts and other dried fruits. The choices are endless. We also make tamales with fresh chili pasilla (roasted, peeled, sliced into slivers), chicken or cheese, and onions. Sometimes we will even add Spanish green olives. P.S, the best tacos around my town is Kings Taco in East Los Angeles. Thank you so much for posting your recipe. I enjoy trying out different recipes. Happy tamale making!
Tim says
you made a comment in your instruction to “Wipe 1 Pasilla chili and 1 Guajillo chili”. Im not familiar with the term wipe. Did you mean wash or literally wipe off the chili?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Tim, yes, use a damp paper towel to wipe off any dust or grit on the surface of the chili.
lili says
This looks very good. Is there a way to make them Whole Plant Based and without oil?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Lili, I’m sure you could make a plant-based tamale, but that would be such a departure from this recipe you’d be better off searching for another one.
Stanislav Rehor says
I must say, very good recipe…. excelent resulrs
Marc Matsumoto says
So glad to hear it, thanks for stopping by to let me know.
Kacee says
Marc, incredible recipe – so much depth to the finished flavor. I’m a fan now! My only problem (and I follow recipes EXACTLY) was in making the masa. I whipped the manteca until it was snow white, then added the masa a little bit at a time. When it was all together, I took a ball and dropped it in a glass….and it sank. Do I need to whip longer or was it too long?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Kacee, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it! What makes the masa float are tiny air bubbles in the manteca, which in turn makes the masa very fluffy after being steamed. This is achieved in the whipping process. If your masa didn’t float, there are two possibilities. The first is that the manteca wasn’t whipped long enough. Did you use an electric mixer or do it by hand? If it was by hand it would have taken a lot longer than 5 minutes to get enough air incorporated. The second possibility is if your masa was hot when you mixed it into the whipped manteca, it’s possible the fat melted and released all the tiny air bubbles in it. I realize this part was entirely clear in the instructions so I’m updating.
Alan says
Hi Marc, how many tamales does this make? Can I simply double the recipe ?
Marc Matsumoto says
Hi Alan, it depends on how large you make them, but this made 20 tamales for me. As for doubling, if your equipment can handle it, you can double it, but for example, my steamer wouldn’t hold more than 20 at a time, and my stand mixer (a KitchenAid) wouldn’t have Have been big enough to make a double batch of the masa at one time.