Tamales come in many presentations according to their preparation and cooking, from steaming to baking, or better yet, buried.
The tamales, regardless of the way of cooking, are wrapped in banana leaves, the least in Yucatan, and are filled with everything you can think of: chicken, ground meat, eggs, chaya, cheese, pork rinds, etc. Here we present you with the recipe to prepare some delicious chicken tamalitos.
Recipe for Yucatecan Tamales
Note: You can find all the ingredients in any market, not all grocery stores carry these ingredients.
Ingredients for the corn dough:
- 2 kg cornmeal prepared for tortillas
- Cheesecloth
- 3 ½ cups (750 grs) lard
- Salt
Ingredients for the filling:
- 1 large chicken
- 1 kg pork cut in cubes
- 2 kg tomatoes, peeled, seeded and roasted
- 500 gr onion
- 1 head of garlic
- Epazote
- 200 grs achiote diluted in ½ cup water
- 250 gr masa for khol
- 1 package banana leaves
- Salt and pepper
- Optional: 2 roasted chiles habaneros, deveined and chopped
Ingredients for the corn dough:
Dissolve the cornmeal in 8 cups of cold water and strain in the cheesecloth. In a deep round, pot combine the strained dough with the lard and the salt. Cook at medium heat and stir briskly with a wooden spoon for 30 minutes or until you can see the bottom of the pan.
Ingredients for the filling:
Boil the chicken and the pork in a large pot with 4 of the tomatoes, onions, garlic, 2 sprigs of epazote, achiote paste, 1 tbs. lard, salt, and pepper. When the chicken and pork is cooked, remove from the heat and remove the meats and then strain the broth. Place the broth in a large pot and add the khol, which is prepared by diluting 250 g. of the masa in cold water until thick.
Building the tamales:
- Cut the banana leaves in squares of 30 x 30 cm.
- Place in the center of each a chunk of the corn masa.
- Place on it a piece of cooked chicken, a chunk of the cooked pork, a piece of tomato, and a sprig of epazote.
- Add chile habanero if you want it hot.
- Wrap closed with the banana leaves.
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