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Cooking Notes
Ellen
Just made these (including the red-chili meat recipe with pork) and they turned out great! We recommend steaming for closer to an hour and 15 mins. Also, the instructions on assembling the tamales were a little confusing (and the tying seems unnecessary) so we looked up a really helpful video on you tube. It would be great if the nyt cooking team could create an instructional tamale video!
Travis
While this recipe yields tasty tamales, it is typical to use nearly a 2:1 ratio of masa to lard for a more authentic version. More importantly, using homemade stock from the meat filling will go a long way towards making the masa more flavorful.
Maerdog
These turned out perfectly. Delicate yet firm once cooled a bit. I used unsalted butter instead of lard without any trouble. Managed to make the dough without a mixer, though doing so took determination. Also, the trick to checking for adequate moisture in the dough (does it float) is on point. Lastly, my tamales took about an hour to steam. I then unwrapped them to let them set up for a few minutes.
lynn rogers
Great, practical, fast recipe. Being as we don't eat pork, I resorted to my work around and got excellent results with duck fat (which is an amazing alternative to lard.) I did blend it with a bit of butter and olive oil but used mostly duck fat and as others noted, increased the ratio. Other lard work-arounds for us include high-quality peanut oil (for flavor) high-quality coconut oil in various combos. There are ways around lard. Used smoked duck meat with red chili sauce. Awesome.
Vivienne
I've tried several versions of tamales and can attest that they are best with a higher proportion of lard to masa, and made with the broth used to cook the pork. At one time I tried with vegetable oil - very disappointing and required a sauce. Good tamales should be edible "straight".
It is key to get fresh lard, not the hydrogenated kind. Some butchers will sell rendered leaf lard. It is not terribly difficult to render it oneself.
Zesus
We use organic unrefined coconut oil. I really like the flavor this adds, whether for these savory, meaty tamales, or for sweeter tamales with fresh corn, cheese, and/or green chiles (hatch chiles are my favorite)... If you use the coconut oil be sure it is cool enough that your oil is a solid at room temperature, so that the step in the recipe where you whip the fat with the salt and baking powder doesn't result in an oil slick. :D
Doug Johnston
Reading over the ingredient list, I must confess I was puzzled by one item....Masa marina.A thickener for nautical cooks?
Emiley
Masa marina is a quite rare ingredient. You'll probably never see it nor will you ever understand it.
betteirene
The first time I made this, I stripped the meat off of a half rack of leftover ribs and used that. It worked! Everyone loved it.The second time, my vegetarian granddaughter was here, so I used Knorr tomato bouillon to make a vegetable stock base and cooked it with a small whole unpeeled yellow onion and a carrot and the tops of a celery bunch. I let cool, then strained it. I cut the kernels from two cobs of corn and added it (raw) to the masa dough along with the stock. It was good, too
Sarah
Used leftover bacon fat for the lard. The measurements across fat and stock aren't critical. In the end, you want a dough that you can spread over a husk, so that may involve wetting your spatula with water.
Anyway, this recipe and my personal experience affirms that tamales are not rocket science, nor do they necessitate a family reunion for a production line. Preparing the dough and the filling on different days to help spread out the labor is not a new idea!
Andri
i would only add that there are youtube videos describing the fold... I made my tamales with leftover boneless & stuffed turkey breast; proportion of ingredients was accurate. Maybe a heresy the filling i used, sharing just to show the versality of these tamales, corn flour (masa harina) is king. I choose the brands that are faithful to the nixtamalization.
Edie Clark
masa harina is instant corn masa mix. Here in Texas our grocery stores carry it. Make a is the brand most common and you want the version labeled “tamal” for tamales. ( there is another version for tortillas)
Jenny
This recipe is great! Makes very delicate tamales. If you have an instant pot, I recommend cooking on manual for 38 minutes using a steam rack and a cup of water. Additionally, if you use the red meat recipe, use the leftover stock produced there for extra flavor!
Jen
I followed the recipe exactly and the result was amazing. Great tip to make sure to go a little heavier on seasoning the meat prior to assembling the tamales - it yielded a great balance of savory, rich filling with the classic taste of the masa. Really excited to try this with lamb next. Thank you for the fabulous recipe!
Jennifer
Masa marina=masa harina
Nicholas Roth
This recipe makes 16 regular-sized Mexican tamales of the size sold at my local Mexican market. Combining this with the red chile meat recipe yields approximately the right ratio of meat to chile, but I would suggest adding a little bit more meat than the recipe calls for.
Emiley
Not having easy access to lard, I made these using coconut oil. I also used blue corn masa. My dough never floated, I tried adding more fat and liquid, but it just never happened and I grew impatient. After steaming for 45 minutes, they were perfectly cooked and tender, enough to totally unwrap and hold by its end to eat with your hands. Delicious!
Nicholas Roth
From what I've read elsewhere, the floating indicates that there's enough air in the dough and is most likely to happen when using freshly milled masa. Using dried masa, my dough briefly floats before slowly sinking to the bottom.
betteirene
The first time I made this, I stripped the meat off of a half rack of leftover ribs and used that. It worked! Everyone loved it.The second time, my vegetarian granddaughter was here, so I used Knorr tomato bouillon to make a vegetable stock base and cooked it with a small whole unpeeled yellow onion and a carrot and the tops of a celery bunch. I let cool, then strained it. I cut the kernels from two cobs of corn and added it (raw) to the masa dough along with the stock. It was good, too
Doug Johnston
Reading over the ingredient list, I must confess I was puzzled by one item....Masa marina.A thickener for nautical cooks?
Emiley
Masa marina is a quite rare ingredient. You'll probably never see it nor will you ever understand it.
Sarah
Used leftover bacon fat for the lard. The measurements across fat and stock aren't critical. In the end, you want a dough that you can spread over a husk, so that may involve wetting your spatula with water.
Anyway, this recipe and my personal experience affirms that tamales are not rocket science, nor do they necessitate a family reunion for a production line. Preparing the dough and the filling on different days to help spread out the labor is not a new idea!
Question
I don't eat red meat or pork. With what can I substitute lard? Thank you.
Nick
duck fat
Zesus
We use organic unrefined coconut oil. I really like the flavor this adds, whether for these savory, meaty tamales, or for sweeter tamales with fresh corn, cheese, and/or green chiles (hatch chiles are my favorite)... If you use the coconut oil be sure it is cool enough that your oil is a solid at room temperature, so that the step in the recipe where you whip the fat with the salt and baking powder doesn't result in an oil slick. :D
Question
Kindly disregard. I see notes regarding substituting duck fat, etc. Thank you
lynn rogers
Great, practical, fast recipe. Being as we don't eat pork, I resorted to my work around and got excellent results with duck fat (which is an amazing alternative to lard.) I did blend it with a bit of butter and olive oil but used mostly duck fat and as others noted, increased the ratio. Other lard work-arounds for us include high-quality peanut oil (for flavor) high-quality coconut oil in various combos. There are ways around lard. Used smoked duck meat with red chili sauce. Awesome.
Vivienne
I've tried several versions of tamales and can attest that they are best with a higher proportion of lard to masa, and made with the broth used to cook the pork. At one time I tried with vegetable oil - very disappointing and required a sauce. Good tamales should be edible "straight".
It is key to get fresh lard, not the hydrogenated kind. Some butchers will sell rendered leaf lard. It is not terribly difficult to render it oneself.
Lulu
Any thoughts on substitutions for corn husks?
lynn rogers
Banana leaves. Can be found frozen in many Latin and Asian stores. They are traditional and add a wonderful wonderful subtle flavor. We use them a lot. If you are really in a pinch, we have done it with parchment....but it is not as sturdy/durable as the leaves or husks.
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