Tamales are a must have Mexican staple along with carne asada, fajitas, enchiladas, carnitas and tres leches cake!
How to Make Tamales Video
Masa for Tamales ingredients
This easy to make masa for tamales recipe is the starting point to making the best homemade tamales! The light, tender and flavorful tamale dough is made by mixing masa harina with a broth, corn oil instead of lard or shortening, baking powder, cumin, and salt until it forms as a soft dough. Here’s what you’ll need to make masa for tamales (full measurements in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post):
Dried corn husks for Mexican Tamales
Dried corn husks are crucial in making homemade tamales. The husks are soaked until soft and pliable, stuffed with filling, folded and steamed. The wrapper is not eaten but imparts a certain flavor to the tamales. In general, you want to look for husks that are wide instead of narrow, which makes them easier to wrap around the filling. If your husks happen to be fairly narrow, you can overlap two on top of each other to create one wide husk. I also shred a few husks to create lots of long skinny pieces of “string” to tie the tamales together, or use kitchen or baking twine.
Mexican Tamale Filling Ideas
You can fill your homemade tamales with ANYTHING you want! Most tamales are filled with slow-cooked seasoned, shredded meats (usually chicken or pork), or make them vegetarian with beans and cheese or your choice of vegetables such as sweet potatoes, corn, peppers, or carrots. Here are some filling suggestions for this tamale recipe, my favorite being the Honey Lime Salsa Verde Chicken: :
Types of Homemade Tamales
Chicken Tamales
Pork Tamales
beef Tamales
vegetarian Tamales
HOW TO MAKE Tamales
Making Mexican tamales from scratch requires some time and patience, but the actual process is not difficult at all! You also don’t have to make every element of this recipe on the same day. The filling can be made a day or two in advance (it actually is easier to work with cold), and the masa can be made 24 hours in advance. Here’s step-by-step tutorial on how to make tamales (full recipe in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post:
Step 1: Make the Filling
Choose any tamale filling you’d like from the list I shared above. You will need about 2 ½ cups. I like to make the filling a day ahead of time if making in the slow cooker, otherwise, there are some great 10-minute options like mixing shredded chicken with a jar of salsa verde.
Step 2: Soak the corn husks
Soaking makes the husks pliable enough to wrap around the stuffed tamales without tearing
Add the husks. Place the corn husks in a large stockpot and top with warm water until they are submerged. Weigh down the husks. The husks will float to the top, so you’ll need to weight them down. I place a bowl on top of the husks, then add a heavy object like a large can inside of the bowl. Cover the husks, then soak for about 40 minutes.
Step 3: Make the masa (Corn Dough)
You can make the masa with 1) a stand mixer which creates the fluffiest filling and is the quickest and easiest, 2) with a hand mixer which is a little messier and not quite as fluffy or 3) by hand which requires a lot of elbow grease and won’t be nearly as fluffy.
Combine ingredients. Whisk together the masa harina, salt, cumin and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Beat in the oil until combined, then gradually add the broth until combined. Beat until fluffy. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue to beat until very fluffy, about 5 minutes. Check consistency. The dough should be soft and spreadable like thick hummus. If the dough is too dry, add more broth. If it’s too wet, add more masa harina. Use now or later. At this point, you can use the dough immediately, or cover with a damp paper towel and refrigerate until ready to use.
Step 4: Assemble the tamales
Add the dough. Lay one corn husk on a cutting board, with the wide end towards you (makes it easier to work with). Add roughly ¼ cup of corn dough to the center of the bottom half of the husk. (I use a large cookie scoop because it’s so much easier). Spread the masa. Spread the masa out into a square, keeping it on the bottom half of the corn husk, leaving about ½-1 inch boarder around the side edges. This will make sure filling doesn’t ooze out the sides. You can use wet fingers to spread the dough, a spatula, butter knife, offset spatula, or even a putty knife – whatever works for you! Add the filling. Tamales need a surprisingly little filling! Add about 2 tablespoons of filling to the center of the masa square and keep it shaped in a rectangle, don’t spread it out.
Step 5: how to fold tamales
Fold the corn husk vertically. First, fold one long side in towards the center, so the edge covers the filling. Next, fold the other long side in (like folding a brochure), overlapping the first. Fold in half. Fold the bottom of the husk up, so that it’s now folded in half. Tying the tamales is optional. You don’t have to tie the tamales together if using a small enough pot to steam them, they will stay together without it! However, tying is helpful if your pot is wider and it makes a cute presentation. It can also help distinguish if you are making multiple fillings. How to tie tamales: You can tear a long strip from the edge of a soaked corn husk to create a skinny strip, or use baking string/kitchen twine to wrap around the center of the tamale and tie it in a knot.
Step 6: Steam the tamales
Add water. Fill the very bottom of a stock pot or instant pot with water. Add tamales. Place the prepared tamales upright (with their open end up) into a steamer basket (for stock pot), or instant pot. Steamer: Cover, bring the water to a boil, reduce to a simmer and steam for about 45 minutes. You’ll know they’re done when the masa separates easily from the corn husks. Instant Pot: Cook on Manual/High Pressure for 25 minutes. Allow pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes, and then quick release.
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