Is anyone else making xmas tamales this year?

[MoseyWalker]

yum! what more can I say?

:bounce:

[Suich]

1. Huh?

:shrug:

[MoseyWalker]

2. it's a Hispanic/Mexican thing

xmas tamales are a tradition!

[Skittles]

3. OMG STOP

a Hispanic guy at work, his mom makes us Christmas workers a giant pile of Xmas Tamales - gawd - friggin' AWESOME. :thumbsup:

[MoseyWalker]

4. I am actually salivating

just at the thought of a giant pile of tamales!

:rofl:

I can't wait to wolf'em down! damn the diet. IT'S FRIGGEN XMAS!

[Skittles]

5. that woman puts us all in a food coma by 8 PM

and we will still have ten more hours to go!!! :o

[BrotherBuzz]

6. Couple of old Mexican ladies make and peddle the best tamales in my small town

Why bother making them? We bought a couple of dozen and will have then all consumed by the year's end.

[MoseyWalker]

7. Why bother making them?

art thou blaspheming, brother?

:)

[Beausoir]

8. No, but my friend in San Antonio sent me some white chocolate tamales for Christmas,

She knows I live in an area where the only tamales that are sold are at the movie theatre and those are red and cinnamon flavored.

White choccie tamales aren't much better, but I appreciated her kindness.

[MoseyWalker]

9. Now that is really a cool gesture

good friend you have there!

[Beausoir]

10. Yep. She is the best.

Would LOVE a tamale recipe in this thread!

[MoseyWalker]

11. here ya go

New Mexico Tamales

# 4 lb Pork shoulder
# 6 c Water
# 6 tb To 8 chile powder
# 1/8 ts Oregano (optional)
# 1/4 ts Cumin (optional)
# 2 cl Garlic, chopped fine
----MASA FOR TAMALES----
# 5 lb Masa corn meal flour
# 1 lb Lard
# Pork broth from above
# 48 Corn husks(dried)

Tamales: Boil meat in water until tender. Remove meat from broth, saving broth for making dough and chile. Chop meat in 1/4 inch pieces and place in pan. Disolve chile powder in 1 1/2 cups of the meat broth, add to the meat, add garlic, spices and salt, and cook until almost dry. Set aside, while preparing dough (masa). Masa for Tamales: Cream lard in a medium size mixing bowl, using a mixer at medium speed. Add flour and mix. Add enough of the meat broth to make dough spreadable with a table knife. Assembling the Tamales: Rinse corn husks and soak in warm water until pliable. Spread the center portion of each husk with 2 tb of the masa mixture. Top with the chile meat filling. Varied amounts of either the masa or thee filling may be used (some like them thin, some like more of the filling). Fold the sides of the hushs toward the center, the bottom of the husk up the top down. Tie each tamale top and bottom with a narrow corn husk strip. Pour 2 inches of water in a large kettle and arrange the tamales on a rack above water level. Steam tamales for about 40 minutes.

From: New Mexico Magazine Dec-93

edit: put a wet hand towel over the tamales as they are steaming.

[Beausoir]

12. Oh that looks soooo good!

Wanna come over and cook some for me?

[judaspriestess]

13. I don't have the time to make tamales

but I have made tamale pie before. Its not bad. Same concept and ingredients, just not as much work.

I can't find the recipe though. :(


I'm down with my TEX-MEX Christmas.

brisket
homemade flour tortillas
borracho beans
rice
guacamole
potato salad
sopapillas or buneulos
+ some other extras

If you have never tried a brisket taco, it is the best!!

[Suich]

14. How about that!!!

I went to my neighbor's tonight and guess what they had for dinner?????
Yup, tamales!!!

:hi:

[BikeWriter]

15. No, but I bought five dozen home made ones night before last.

[bearfan454]

16. Franmarz's tamale recipe

This is posted with the permission of franmarz. She made these every year when we were kids. They are superb. For any questions, please PM franmarz. Thanks.

4 - 5 lbs fresh pork(Boston Butt pork roast works well)
1 lb corn husks
1 lb chili ancho dried peppers
4 lbs crisco or lard(lard is the original way)
5 lbs masa meal
4 - 6 tbsp salt
3 - 4 tbsp baking powder

Put husks in a dish pan to soak and become pliable. Boil the fresh pork, defat, debone, and tear into small pieces and put in the icebox covered. Save the liquid to cool.

Crack open the dried peppers and rinse out the seeds. Combine the masa, salt, and baking powder and whip until light and fluffy, set aside.

Put the peppers in a pot and bring to a boil, then simmer until all peppers turn orange in color. Then put through a food mill and discard the skins.

Sauce:
3 tbsp crisco or lard
1 1/2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp parsley with a pinch of sugar in it
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp comino
2 garlic cloves - crushed
Combine the above ancho paste and all sauce ingredients. Cook over low heat for 15 - 20 minutes. Stir often - it pops. Add the meat to the ancho sauce and set aside.

Masa dough:
Put the masa, crisco, salt, baking powder mixture in a large bowl. Add the cooled meat broth and water. It may take 5-6-7 quarts. Make a soft mush-like marshmallow creme consistency.
Test for doneness:
Put a small pinch of dough in a glass of cool water. If it floats, it's done. If it sinks add more crisco(or lard) and cool water. Retest until it floats. Take the soaking softened corn husks from the water and assemble the tamales.

You should have 3 containers.
# 1 container - meat sauce
# 2 container - softened corn husks
# 3 container - masa paste

Open each corn husk and spread 3- 4 tbsp of masa in the middle of each husk. Put 2 - 3 tsp meat sauce in the middle of the masa. Start rolling from one side like a cigar. Fold the end over and tuck underneath. Lay flat in a pan until you have 3 or 4 dozen ready to steam.

To steam:
Stand tamales upright pyramid style in your steamer with the hole at the top. You can put a mason jar or other heat bearable glass in the middle to lean tamales up against. Steam in small batches to fit the pot, only 3 or 4 dozen at a time. Cover the pot but leave a small steam hole or the masa will melt during the steaming and run out. I use a presto canner and put the lid on off center for the steam to escape. Steam about 45 minutes or an hour.

Test for doneness:
Unroll one tamale. If the masa has thickened and pulls away from the corn hust it is done. If the dough sticks to the husk, rewrap it and continue to steam maybe 15 or 20 minutes more. REMEMBER - NEVER LET THE STEAMER RUN DRY OF WATER. The steaming time depends on the size and thickness of the tamales. Best size is is like an orange push up ice cream. You can experiment if you like them thicker or thinner.

[Maestro]

17. Yep.

Ate them last night for Christmas Eve dinner with all the folks. They were yummy!

[NMDemDist2]

18. indeed, we didn't get any this year

:cry:

but the recipe from franmarz is a keeper that I may try next year

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=236x30425

[leftofthedial]

19. made 'em last week.

ate 'em last night!

Mighty good.