Post by April B. on Oct 27, 2003 10:47:39 GMT -6
HOT TAMALES
THE NIGHT BEFORE:
6 lbs. pork shoulder, cut through bone
6 lbs. pork butt
4 tbsp. salt
2 whole garlic heads (remove excess skin)
Combine these ingredients in a large pot with enough water to cover the meat. Bring it to a boil and simmer all night (7 hours) with a very low flame.
(The meat will fall off the bone.)
CHILI PREPARATION:
Approximately 20 (2 pkgs. chili pasilla-dried)
Approximately 6 (1/2 pkg. chili California)
The seeds and veins are very hot, so you must remove all of the seeds and as much of the vein as possible.
Pull out the stem and tear the chili with your fingers to remove the seeds and veins.
Wash the chilies well and put into a large pot with a lid.
Cover the chiles with boiling water and cover; set overnight.
You may want to use rubber glove while cleaning the chiles.
CORN HUSK PREPARATION:
Soak 2 packages of corn husks in a large container of very hot water.
THE NEXT MORNING (6:00 A.M.) :
Remove the pot of meat from the stove and let the meat cool in the broth.
When it is cool, remove bones and save the garlic head.
Put the meat into a colander and save the broth for later use.
Shred the meat with your hands and take the garlic heads and press the juice into the meat.
RED CHILI SAUCE FOR PICADILLO (MEAT) :
Chiles soaking in pot
4 tbsp. cumin seed (grind in molcajete)
2 tsp. whole oregano (crumble leaves)
1 cinnamon stick
1 med. onion, cut in quarters
1 whole garlic head, peeled and cleaned
Salt to taste
Heat a saucepan large enough to hold the meat and the sauce on low heat.
Meanwhile, in a blender, add a handful of the soaked chiles with 1 1/2 cups of meat broth. Puree.
Pour this into the heated saucepan and raise the heat. Continue this process to the final batch.
In the final batch, add remaining ingredients and puree. Add the final batch to the saucepan, stirring continually.
When the sauce boils, add the shredded meat and cook until the meat comes to a boil.
Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring constantly.
If the meat needs more liquid, add small amounts of the meat broth.
Meat is now ready to remove from the stove to fill the tamales.
MASA DOUGH:
12 lbs. prepared masa (fresh corn prepared masa)
1/2 c. meat broth
2 tbsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. salt
1 c. lard (melted)
Using your hands, knead the dough until the masa expands and is very fluffy.
(Masa will float to the top when dropped into a cup of
cold water.) More broth from meat can be added, a small amount at a time, if the masa seems too thick to spread easily.
The masa should be used the same day it is bought. It should not be refrigerated.
(I have someone pick up masa while I prepare meat
mixture.)
ASSEMBLING:
Shake the corn husks well to remove any excess water and pick the silk off.
Pat them dry with a towel.
Stand them in a large bowl.
Smear a thin coat (1 heaping tablespoon) of masa over the broadest part of the husk.
Spread 1 heaping tablespoon of filling down the middle of the masa.
Fold the right side over the filling and then fold, or roll the
left side over the previously folded side.
Fold the pointed end (no masa is there) of the husk down over the tamale.
STEAMING THE TAMALES:
The most convenient way to cook tamales is a conventional
steamer.
You can, of course, improvise, but improvisations are not usually as efficient -- a lot of good steam escapes and the cooking is not as even.
Fill the bottom of the steamer with broth from meat up to the level indicated and bring it to a boil.
As the liquid in the bottom part comes to a boil, put a coin into it, and put the top part of the steamer on.
Stack the tamales upright and for beat results they should be packed firmly but not too tightly, because the husks swell out as the dough cooks.
(I always find that a small batch of tamales, not firmly packed in the steamer, do not cook as well or as quickly and are more likely to absorb the condensed steam.)
Cover the top of the steamer with heavy duty foil.
Seal tightly so steam does not escape, and let the tamales cook for 2 hours over a medium flame.
Keep the water bubbling, but not boiling violently. That
is the reason for the coin. You will be able to hear it dancing about, and it will tell you if the water goes off the boil or is getting dangerously low.
If the water is allowed to go off the boil, the tamales will
be heavy.
To test the tamales for doneness (after 2 hours), remove one from the center and one from the side of the steamer. As you open the husks, the dough should come away easily from the husks and be completely smooth.
To make doubly sure, open up the tamales and see if they are spongy and well cooked throughout.
Once cooked, the tamales are very good tempered.
They are wonderful eaten right away, straight out of the husks. After they cool off, they are also extremely good heated through very gently in their husks in an
ungreased heavy frying pan, on a griddle, or in the microwave oven.
When they are heated in a frying pan, keep turning them so that they heat through evenly and the husk gets slightly browned but does not burn.
They can be refrigerated and will keep well stored that way for about a week.
It is best, however, to freeze them.
To reheat, they can be wrapped in foil, put into a 350 degree oven still frozen, and heated through for about 30 minutes.
They can also be heated in the microwave oven.
The best result is to resteam.
THE NIGHT BEFORE:
6 lbs. pork shoulder, cut through bone
6 lbs. pork butt
4 tbsp. salt
2 whole garlic heads (remove excess skin)
Combine these ingredients in a large pot with enough water to cover the meat. Bring it to a boil and simmer all night (7 hours) with a very low flame.
(The meat will fall off the bone.)
CHILI PREPARATION:
Approximately 20 (2 pkgs. chili pasilla-dried)
Approximately 6 (1/2 pkg. chili California)
The seeds and veins are very hot, so you must remove all of the seeds and as much of the vein as possible.
Pull out the stem and tear the chili with your fingers to remove the seeds and veins.
Wash the chilies well and put into a large pot with a lid.
Cover the chiles with boiling water and cover; set overnight.
You may want to use rubber glove while cleaning the chiles.
CORN HUSK PREPARATION:
Soak 2 packages of corn husks in a large container of very hot water.
THE NEXT MORNING (6:00 A.M.) :
Remove the pot of meat from the stove and let the meat cool in the broth.
When it is cool, remove bones and save the garlic head.
Put the meat into a colander and save the broth for later use.
Shred the meat with your hands and take the garlic heads and press the juice into the meat.
RED CHILI SAUCE FOR PICADILLO (MEAT) :
Chiles soaking in pot
4 tbsp. cumin seed (grind in molcajete)
2 tsp. whole oregano (crumble leaves)
1 cinnamon stick
1 med. onion, cut in quarters
1 whole garlic head, peeled and cleaned
Salt to taste
Heat a saucepan large enough to hold the meat and the sauce on low heat.
Meanwhile, in a blender, add a handful of the soaked chiles with 1 1/2 cups of meat broth. Puree.
Pour this into the heated saucepan and raise the heat. Continue this process to the final batch.
In the final batch, add remaining ingredients and puree. Add the final batch to the saucepan, stirring continually.
When the sauce boils, add the shredded meat and cook until the meat comes to a boil.
Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring constantly.
If the meat needs more liquid, add small amounts of the meat broth.
Meat is now ready to remove from the stove to fill the tamales.
MASA DOUGH:
12 lbs. prepared masa (fresh corn prepared masa)
1/2 c. meat broth
2 tbsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. salt
1 c. lard (melted)
Using your hands, knead the dough until the masa expands and is very fluffy.
(Masa will float to the top when dropped into a cup of
cold water.) More broth from meat can be added, a small amount at a time, if the masa seems too thick to spread easily.
The masa should be used the same day it is bought. It should not be refrigerated.
(I have someone pick up masa while I prepare meat
mixture.)
ASSEMBLING:
Shake the corn husks well to remove any excess water and pick the silk off.
Pat them dry with a towel.
Stand them in a large bowl.
Smear a thin coat (1 heaping tablespoon) of masa over the broadest part of the husk.
Spread 1 heaping tablespoon of filling down the middle of the masa.
Fold the right side over the filling and then fold, or roll the
left side over the previously folded side.
Fold the pointed end (no masa is there) of the husk down over the tamale.
STEAMING THE TAMALES:
The most convenient way to cook tamales is a conventional
steamer.
You can, of course, improvise, but improvisations are not usually as efficient -- a lot of good steam escapes and the cooking is not as even.
Fill the bottom of the steamer with broth from meat up to the level indicated and bring it to a boil.
As the liquid in the bottom part comes to a boil, put a coin into it, and put the top part of the steamer on.
Stack the tamales upright and for beat results they should be packed firmly but not too tightly, because the husks swell out as the dough cooks.
(I always find that a small batch of tamales, not firmly packed in the steamer, do not cook as well or as quickly and are more likely to absorb the condensed steam.)
Cover the top of the steamer with heavy duty foil.
Seal tightly so steam does not escape, and let the tamales cook for 2 hours over a medium flame.
Keep the water bubbling, but not boiling violently. That
is the reason for the coin. You will be able to hear it dancing about, and it will tell you if the water goes off the boil or is getting dangerously low.
If the water is allowed to go off the boil, the tamales will
be heavy.
To test the tamales for doneness (after 2 hours), remove one from the center and one from the side of the steamer. As you open the husks, the dough should come away easily from the husks and be completely smooth.
To make doubly sure, open up the tamales and see if they are spongy and well cooked throughout.
Once cooked, the tamales are very good tempered.
They are wonderful eaten right away, straight out of the husks. After they cool off, they are also extremely good heated through very gently in their husks in an
ungreased heavy frying pan, on a griddle, or in the microwave oven.
When they are heated in a frying pan, keep turning them so that they heat through evenly and the husk gets slightly browned but does not burn.
They can be refrigerated and will keep well stored that way for about a week.
It is best, however, to freeze them.
To reheat, they can be wrapped in foil, put into a 350 degree oven still frozen, and heated through for about 30 minutes.
They can also be heated in the microwave oven.
The best result is to resteam.
