Tamales
Directions
- 1Season a 4-5 pound beef chuck roast with kosher salt, and place it in a dutch oven with 2 beef bouillon cubes and 1 large quartered onion.
- 2Add 6 whole peeled garlic cloves and 1 tablespoon of oregano.
- 3Add enough water to almost cover the roast and braise in a 275°F oven for 3-4 hours, flipping once or twice.
- 4Meanwhile, prepare a chili paste by deseeding, deveining, and tearing 4 ancho, 4 pasilla, and 6 guajillo chiles into 1-inch pieces.
- 5Dry roast the chiles in a saucepan over medium heat for 1-3 minutes, until fragrant but not smoking.
- 6Quench with enough water to cover, add 4-5 cloves of garlic, and half a small chopped onion. Cover, bring to a boil, simmer for 15 minutes, and then puree in a high-powered blender with just enough cooking liquid to make it thick but pourable.
- 7Once the beef is tender, remove it from the braising liquid, separate the fat from the meat, shred, and toss with some of the chili paste, a pinch of kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper.
- 8Poach 2 butterflied chicken breasts in 2 quarts of boiling water. After killing the heat, drop in the chicken, cover, and let the carryover heat cook it to 155°F.
- 9This will take around 12-18 minutes.Shred the chicken and let it cool.
- 10Broil 9 tomatillos, 2 jalapenos, and 1 poblano pepper for 2-5 minutes under a high powered broiler until you get a nice color on them.
- 11Cover with aluminum foil and allow to steam for 10 minutes to easily remove the skins, stems, and seeds.
- 12Blend the roasted vegetables with half a small chopped onion, 2 cloves of chopped garlic, a pinch of kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, and 1 leaf of a bunch of cilantro until smooth but still chunky.
- 13Once both the chicken and the sauce have cooled, mix the shredded chicken with the sauce. You can do this same day, or cover and refrigerate overnight.
- 14Strain the poaching liquid from the chicken and reserve it.
- 15Mix 24 ounces of masa harina with 24-26 ounces of very hot water (or the braising liquid from the beef) until a crumbly but shapable dough is formed. Cover and let rest for 15 minutes.
- 16In a stand mixer, beat 14 ounces of lard with 2 teaspoons each of kosher salt and baking powder until light and fluffy.
- 17Add the crumbly masa harina dough and mix until smooth and spreadable, adding more chicken water if necessary.
- 18For dessert tamales, add 5 tablespoons of granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 4 ounces of finely chopped pineapple, and 3 ounces of black raisins to the dough. Mix until incorporated.
- 19Soak corn husks in water for 24 hours or hot water for 3 hours. Once soaked, dry them off and sort them.The widest and most intact husks are ideal for tamales.
- 20To fill the tamales, smear between 1/3 to 1/2 cup of the tamale dough onto the center of the upper half of the husk in a 6x4 inch rectangle, 1/4 inch thick.
- 21Place a strip of filling down the center of the dough and use the husk to wrap the dough around the filling, making sure the dough completely envelopes the filling.
- 22Fold up the bottom of the husk and tie it using a length of torn husk.
- 23Stack the tamales in a steamer basket, fillings facing upward, cover with a few unused soaked corn husks and a moist kitchen towel, and steam for 1 1/2 -2 hours.
- 24Let the tamales rest in the pot for another 30 minutes.
Ingredients
- 1 kosher salt
- 2 beef bouillon cubes
- 1 large onion
- 6 whole peeled cloves of garlic
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- 4 ancho chiles
- 4 pasilla chiles
- 6 guajillo chiles
- 1 water
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 half small onion
- 14 ounces lard
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 ounces pineapple
- 3 ounces black raisins
- 1 red food coloring
- 24 ounces masa harina
- 24 ounces very hot water
- 9 tomatillos
- 2 jalapenos
- 1 poblano pepper
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1 crema
- 1 sour cream
- 1 lime juice
- 1 scoop salsa roja
- 1 corn husks
- 4 pounds beef chuck roast
Equipment
knifecutting boarddutch ovensaucepanblenderstand mixerfood thermometeraluminum foilsteamer basketstock potkitchen towelscissors
Related recipes
Cheesy Hatch Carne Asada Tacos
Mexican · Drink
Tacos al Pastor
Mexican · Drink
Blood Orange Margarita Batch
Mexican · Drink
Chicken Nacho Verde Burritos
Mexican · Drink
Al Pastor Shawarma
Mexican · Drink
Mexican Chicken Al Pastor Shawarma
Mexican · Drink
Horchata Iced Coffee
Mexican · Drink
Chocolate Horchata
Mexican · Drink
Horchata de chocolate y café
Mexican · Drink
Pumpkin Spice Horchata
Mexican · Drink
Café de Olla
Mexican · Drink
Strawberry Agua de Fresca
Mexican · Drink