tamales

Tamales de puerco para Día de la Candelaria

1 · Feb 2, 2012 · 4 Comments

It’s Día de la Candelaria and I have to confess: I’ve been so busy with non-bloggy things (you know…normal life, work, family obligations, Mr. H’s birthday, etc.) that I just haven’t had a chance to make my own tamales yet, let alone photograph and write up my recipe to share. But I promise I will soon.

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you a very special recipe from my friend Leslie that really touched me when I read it this morning. I immediately asked her if I could share it with all of you. Gracias, Leslie, for sharing this story and your abuela’s recipe, and for letting me borrow this photo to show everyone your beautiful tamales de puerco.

: Photo courtesy of Leslie Limon

Head over to La Cocina de Leslie for her abuela’s recipe for tamales rojos con puerco; she’s provided an awesome step by step guide with photos to help you through the recipe—especially great if you’re making tamales for the first time ever. Bet you can’t guess her abuela’s secret ingredient!

What are your favorite kind of tamales?

Five steps for a successful tamalada

4 · Dec 10, 2011 · 2 Comments

I adore tamales; they remind me of the holidays and various special occasions. When I smell them, I get a warm, fuzzy feeling inside that is hard to explain. No other food gives me the same exact feeling, actually.

There were tamales at my wedding shower in Mexico (called a despedida). There have always been tamales available for birthdays and Christmas and Día de La Candelaria. In fact, on Día de Los Reyes, I’ve had the luck to get the baby Jesus figurine in my piece of Rosca de Reyes several times in the past. As tradition goes, if you get the figurine, you’re responsible for bringing tamales for everyone on Día de La Candelaria. When José’s abuela passed away, everyone came back to the house after the prayer service to have tamales, like she would have wanted us to. They’re a staple and a symbol in Mexican cuisine.

So, it might surprise you to find out that I’ve never before hosted my own tamalada—a tamal-making party. Yes, it’s true. I’ve never hosted one, but I really want to in the coming year! My favorite savory tamales are usually tamales de pollo con salsa verde and when it comes to the sweet variety, un tamal de chocolate makes my mouth water and my heart skip a beat. I’ve made tamales on my own at home but never had a party and invited friends and family to help out and enjoy them with me afterward.

One reason a lot of people don’t make their own tamales at home is because it’s a bit labor intensive. There are several steps to successfully making them, and it’s time-consuming. To make it worthwhile, a tamalada is the perfect solution because everyone gathers together at one place and forms an assembly-line style workforce to get everything finished in less time. Then you can steam them in your tamalera. When they’re done, it’s party time! There’s nothing quite like a freshly-steamed tamal, whether it’s savory or sweet.

Here are the five basic steps for a successful tamalada, according to the advice I’ve received and what I’ve observed, and that I plan to follow when I host mine:

Ideally, as a hostess, you’ll have the masa ready in advance. I’m not suggesting you grind your corn from scratch and all that (unless you want to). But for a modern tamalada, it’s perfectly acceptable to buy pre-made masa at a tortillería or grocery store, or use Maseca instant masa without feeling guilty.
Every tamal needs a little grasa in the masa! If your tamal is lacking moisture, it might because you didn’t use any manteca. You don’t have to use a lot, but it helps with the consistency and flavor. The best tamales are the ones that have light and fluffy masa that isn’t dry.
Depending on which region your tamales come from, you’ll use either cornhusks or banana leaves to wrap them. Either way, they need to be pliable. Cornhusks need to be soaked in water well in advance so they won’t rip. Banana leaves can be heated and soaked, too.
You’re going to need a filling (or a few different fillings, depending on how many tamales you plan to made). You can use shredded meats stewed in salsa, vegetables such as rajas or even sweet fillings using fruit (my favorite is strawberry). Make sure your filling isn’t too wet when it comes time to spread it over the masa, or you’ll end up with weird, soggy tamales.
Learn how to wrap that tamal up! It’s really easy to learn how to properly fold the cornhusk. You can even find tons of advice on YouTube with how-to videos on the subject. I like to also use a small strip of cornhusk to tie a little bow around the middle to keep the flap closed for steaming. I find that closing it up completely gets the tamal uniformly steamed with no dry spots near the top.

Check out these recipes from Maseca for all kinds of different tamales.

Have you hosted a tamalada? Do you have any tips for me?

This is a sponsored post through a campaign with Maseca and Latina Bloggers Connect. Though I am being compensated for participating, all opinions, recipes and stories are my own.

Feliz Día de la Candelaria

3 · Feb 2, 2011 · 8 Comments

Today marks the Catholic holiday of Día de la Candelaria, known as Candlemas in English.

In Mexico, whoever cuts the Rosca de Reyes on Día de Los Reyes and ends up with the baby Jesus figurine is responsible for bringing tamales for everyone on February 2. Several times I’ve gotten the figurine while celebrating Día de Los Reyes with our family in Mexico and always get teased that I’ll have to come back for a visit soon (with tamales in tow).

Today, we’re eating tamales de pollo con mole verde at our house to celebrate. I admit: I bought mine this year from my favorite tamalería, the Tamalli Space Charros. They’ve got a tamal truck and when they stopped near my house the other day, I just couldn’t resist and bought a few for the holiday.

It’s also common in Mexico to enjoy your tamales on Día de la Candelaria with an atole. You can check out my recipe for champurrado for a delicious chocolate atole.

We’re working on a great recipe for tamales in the test kitchen based on a recipe given to us by a friend who grew up along the Texas-Mexico border. Her mother owns a well-known restaurant and one of the cooks there was generous enough to share their recipe with us. We can’t wait to pass it on to you soon!

How does your family celebrate Día de la Candelaria? What are your favorite kind of tamales?

Mexique: Celebrating Mexican Cuisine with a French Twist

2 · Dec 20, 2010 · Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago I attended a dinner given by the Mexico Tourism Board and Chef Carlos Gaytan at his restaurant, Mexique, in honor of the recent UNESCO designation of Mexican cuisine as an Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Tourism Board over the last several weeks has hosted authentic Mexican dinners in a number of major North American cities to celebrate, including Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Miami, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver, so I was thrilled to receive the invitation.

Did you know that French recipes and cooking techniques during the French occupation of Mexico in the 1860s became an important element in the evolution of modern Mexican gastronomy?

Gaytan’s concept behind Mexique is modern Mexican food with French influence. Hailing from Huitzuco, Guerrero, Gaytan’s love of food helped him rise from pantry cook to executive chef. He trained with French chef Dominique Tougne of Bistro 110 (Gold Coast) and has also spent time in the kitchens at Bistrot Margo (Old Town) and the Union League Club (Loop), all in Chicago. If you live in Chicago or are visiting, I highly recommend you visit Mexique for a meal.

One thing that left an impression on me at the dinner was when Carlos explained why he doesn’t serve mixed drinks in his restaurant: they take away from the palate and so instead, he serves wine and tequila. And God bless him for telling everyone in the dining room that tequila should be sipped. Someone at a table near me chimed in that “only heathens drink tequila shooters,” which caused an eruption of laughter at my table.

And I can’t end without showing you what we ate. It was a lovely four-course tasting meal with excellent wines and ended with tequila. I can’t wait to return to Mexique for another meal!

PRIMERO: Ceviche

Ahi tuna, avocado mousse, chipotle aioli, mango habanero galette…

How to Celebrate Las Posadas Navideñas

52 · Dec 17, 2010 · 10 Comments

Las posadas navideñas are the nine days of annual Christmas celebrations that culminate with a big celebration on Nochebuena, or Christmas Eve, in Mexico.

The nine days symbolize each of the months that Mary was pregnant, and that’s also why Christmas Eve is more celebrated in Mexico than Christmas Day like in many other countries.

Posadas often include traditional foods and drinks, especially things like tamales and ponche navideño. There are many different ways to make ponche, and each family does something different. Another holiday favorite of mine is rompope, an eggnog-like drink that comes from the famous nuns of Puebla, located about two hours outside of Mexico City.

From hosting las posadas to putting out nativity scenes, and making preparations for Noche Buena and La Navidad, here are some of the ways families in Mexico celebrate the holidays.

Food and drink for celebrating Las Posadas

There are lots of typical dishes and drinks served during the holiday season in Mexico. From ponche navideño and rompope to champurrado and chocolate caliente, there’s a warm drink to make everyone’s belly happy. Tamales, pozole, ensalada de Noche Buena, turkey, bacalao, buñuelos, cookies, and more make the holidays the best time to become acquainted with the rich traditions of Christmastime in Mexico.

Ponche navideño

Mexican Christmas punch, called ponche navideño, is a stewed, warm drink that is served during las posadas, on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and even through Día de Los Reyes Magos.

Every family makes their ponche a little differently. Some are made with jamaica (hibiscus flowers) or tamarindo.

Rompope: Mexican eggnog

Rompope (pronounced “roam-poh-pay”) is a Mexican version of eggnog made with milk, Mexican cinnamon, Mexican vanilla, egg yolks, sugar, aguardiente (cane sugar liquor) and sometimes nutmeg.

Rompope, also known as Mexican eggnog, served with holiday treats next to poinsettia flowers

Meaning of the piñata

The piñata is also a staple of posadas, and everyone from the youngest to the oldest gets a turn to try to break it. Piñatas are traditionally shaped like a star with seven cones, and the cones represent the seven deadly sins.

Piñatas are an important part of any posada. Find this and more about Christmas in Mexico at theothersideofthetortilla.com.

The custom of being blindfolded while hitting the piñata is supposed to symbolize one’s faith, and the stick used to hit the piñata is supposed to symbolize virtue. And traditionally, the piñata is made of an olla de barro, a clay pot, covered in paper maché and decorated with colorful tissue paper and streamers.

A piñata is used to celebrate Las Posadas in Mexico. Visit theothersideofthetortilla.com for more information on how to celebrate this holiday.

Many people still fill their piñata with fruit such as tejocotes, oranges, and guavas, or cane sugar sticks and nuts but it is also common to fill it with candies such as tamarindo or even modern candies like one of my favorites, a strawberry jelly and marshmallow candy bar covered in chocolate called Bubu Lubu.

Song for hitting the piñata

Below are the lyrics to the piñata song, “Dale, dale dale” which is sung during each person’s turn to hit the piñata.

Dale, dale, dale , no pierdas el tino
porque si lo pierdes, pierdes el camino.
Ya le diste una, ya le diste dos, ya le diste tres, ¡y tu tiempo se acabo!

Song for Las Posadas

The “peregrinos” sing verse A and the “innkeepers” sing verse B.

Celebrating las posadas navideñas in Mexico: Traditional song lyrics for posadas. Find this and more about Christmas in Mexico at theothersideofthetortilla.com.

Canción para pedir posada

1a. En el nombre del cielo os pido posada, pues no puede andar mi esposa amada.
1b. Aqui no es mesón, sigan adelante. Yo no debo abrir, no sea algún tunante.

1a. No seas inhumano, tennos caridad, que el Dios de los cielos te lo premiará.
1b. Ya se pueden ir y no molestar, porque si me enfado os voy a apalear.

2a. Venimos rendidos desde Nazarét, yo soy carpintero de nombre José.
2b. No me importa el nombre, déjenme dormir, pues que yo les digo que no hemos de abrir.

2a. Posada te pido, amado casero, por sólo una noche la Reina del Cielo.
2b. Pues si es una reina quien lo solicita, ¿Cómo es que de noche anda tan solita?

3a. Mi esposa es María, es Reina del Cielo y madre va a ser del Divino Verbo.
3b. ¿Eres tú José? ¿Tú esposa es María? Entren, peregrinos, no los conocía.

3a. Dios pague, señores, nuestra caridad, y que os colme el cielo de felicidad.
3b. ¡Dichosa la casa la casa que alberga este día a la Virgen pura! ¡La hermosa María!

Then the peregrinos enter and the tune changes while all sing.

Entren, Santos Peregrinos, reciban este rincón, que aunque es pobre la morada, os la doy de corazón.

Cantemos con alegría, alegría, todos al considerar
Que Jesús, José y María, y María, nos vinieron hoy a honerar.

Nacimientos and decorations

It is very common to see nacimientos, or nativity scenes, displayed as decorations in homes, businesses, stores and outdoors in Mexico. There are all types of materials they can be made from, such as corn husks, wood, or even aluminum.

My mother-in-law has a beautiful nacimiento made of corn husks that she displays every year at Christmastime.

Mexican nativity scene made of corn husks

This one below was an outdoor nativity scene at a Mexican resort we spent the holidays visiting.