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Tamale Instructions

Tamale Instructions recipe image
This Mexican main features Dried cornhusks. The flavors come together beautifully. Great for weeknight dinners or when you want something satisfying for the whole family. Simple to make with ingredients you likely already have on hand, this is a recipe you will come back to again and again.
Cooking Method: , ,
Cuisine:
Courses:
Difficulty: Advanced
Servings: 50
Calories: 36.5
Dietary: Gluten-free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Description
This Mexican main features Dried cornhusks. The flavors come together beautifully. Great for weeknight dinners or when you want something satisfying for the whole family. Simple to make with ingredients you likely already have on hand, this is a recipe you will come back to again and again.
Ingredients
  • 2 package Dried cornhusks
Directions
  1. 1
    Warm water Contributed to the echo by: Leti Labell
  2. 2
    Prepare the corn husks: First go through the corn husks, separating them, and removing pieces of cornsilk (and also dirt, etc.) that you find.
  3. 3
    Then place them in a large bowl and cover with tap water.
  4. 4
    (I put several plates on top of the corn husks to hold them down, because they have a tendency to float.)
  5. 5
    Let them
  6. 6
    soak for at least half an hour.
  7. 7
    Rinse the corn husks several times, to clean them.
  8. 8
    Then drain them well.
  9. 9
    Next, dry off the corn husks.
  10. 10
    While you do this, you can separate them into piles: big husks, medium, and too little to be worth using.
  11. 11
    At this time, you can also
  12. 12
    prepare some thin strips of corn husk, that you will use to tie the tamales together.
  13. 13
    (This is where you you the little pieces too small to
  14. 14
    make a tamale.) (I found that the pieces weren't long enogh to tie around the tamales, so I tied two shorter pieces of thin husk together.
  15. 15
    More on this later.)
  16. 16
    Make the tamales: Hold a large corn husk in your hand, with the narrow end pointing to the right.
  17. 17
    Take a spoonful of dough (I used a serving spoon, about 2 Tbs or so) and
  18. 18
    spread it on the corn husk, about 1-1/2 inches from the wide end, and about 4 inches from the narrow end.
  19. 19
    Spread the dough right up to the edge of the corn husk on one side, leaving enough of a flap to
  20. 20
    wrap around the tamale.
  21. 21
    (If the husk isn't wide enough for you to be able to
  22. 22
    wrap it around, you'll use another husk - more on this later.) Next,
  23. 23
    spread a spoonful (again, about 2 Tbs) of filling down the middle of the dough.
  24. 24
    Roll the sides of the corn husk in toward the center, bringing the edges of the dough together, enclosing the filling.
  25. 25
    Wrap the rest of the corn husk around to the back.
  26. 26
    If there is not enough husk to
  27. 27
    wrap around to the back,
  28. 28
    place another corn husk around the tamale, to hold the edge closed.
  29. 29
    Now,
  30. 30
    wrap the top (broad end) edge down, and flip the bottom part (the narrow end) up, so that it covers the edge of the broad end.
  31. 31
    Then, using the thin strips of corn husk, tie across the middle to hold the top and bottom flaps in
  32. 32
    place .
  33. 33
    Steaming the tamales: Stand the tamales on end in a steamer.
  34. 34
    If you don't have a steamer, you could put the tamales in a metal collander, and
  35. 35
    place the collander in a large pot.
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    Just be sure that the tamales do not touch the water below.
  37. 37
    Bring the water to a brisk boil, and steam the tamales for at least an hour.
  38. 38
    I did it for an hour and 15 minutes.
  39. 39
    You can test one to see if they are done: the dough will easily separate from the husk.
  40. 40
    Just be careful - don't burn yourself on the steam!
  41. 41
    You can reheat tamales in the oven at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.
  42. 42
    (Don't try to re-steam them.) If you
  43. 43
    freeze them, you can reheat them by putting the frozen tamales in a casserole dish, covering with foil, and heating in a 350 oven for 30-35 minutes.
  44. 44
    This was a lot of work, but it was well worth it!

Nutrition Facts

Servings 50

Amount Per Serving
Calories 36.5kcal
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 0.6g1%
Saturated Fat 0.1g1%
Cholesterol 0.0mg0%
Sodium 6.4mg1%
Total Carbohydrate 8.1g3%
Dietary Fiber 1.0g4%
Sugars 1.4g
Protein 1.4g3%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

Keywords: baking, boiling, cornhusks, dried, instructions, main, mexican, steaming, tamale, title, vegan
Read it online: https://www.chefs-mate.com/recipe/tamale-instructions/