Tamales with Red Sauce and Tamales Dulces

By

Pensacola local
La Tienda
3041 E. Olive Road
475-0706

La Mexicana Grocery Store
9200 N. Palafox St.
479-2815

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Ingredients

  • Dough:
  • Filling
  • 200 8 5 pork or chicken (or combo...delicious) in a 200 degree oven for at least 8 hours, or until it falls apart (you need approximately 5 pounds of cooked meat).
  • to from oven and allow to cool.
  • After the meat is prepared, soak corn husks in warm water. Then prepare the dough.
  • 6 6 6 cups of tamale corn masa
  • 6 6 6 cups lukewarm chicken broth
  • 1 1 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 1 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 2 2 cups lard (or Crisco)
  • Red Sauce:
  • quarter cup vegetable oil
  • 2 2 2 tablespoons self rising flour
  • quarter cup chile powder
  • 3 3 cloves 3 large cloves of garlic
  • 1 8-ounce 1 8-ounce 8-ounce can of tomato sauce
  • 1 1 1 halfcups of water
  • quarter teaspoon cumin
  • quarter teaspoon Tony Chachere's seasoning (a staple in any Southerner's cabinet)
  • Tamales Dulces:
  • 2 2 2 pounds prepared masa without salt
  • 2 2 2 cups sugar
  • 1 1 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1 1 1 halfcups raisins, plumped in water
  • 1 1 1 cup coarsely chopped pecans, walnuts or pine nuts
  • 30-40 30-40 20 dried cornhusks, cleaned of debris and soaked in warm water until pliable (about 20 minutes)

Preparation

Step 1

Dough:
Combine masa, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Work in chicken broth with fingers until soft dough forms. In a large mixing bowl with bread hooks, whip lard (or Crisco) until fluffy. Add the masa mix into the lard. Mix until it's a spongy texture.
Then take a little of the dough at a time and press into the shape of a rectangle in the middle of the corn husk shell. Roll a little log of the cooked meat and put this in the center of the dough. Roll the husk into the shape of a cigar. Check to make sure the meat filling is covered, then roll again and fold in the edges. Fill a steam pot with the filled tamales. Put extra corn husks on top of tamales and then a plastic bag. Steam for 1 hour. Top with red sauce.

Red Sauce:
Heat oil in skillet over medium heat, stir in flour and chile powder, cook until lightly brown, stirring to prevent burning. Gradually add the remaining ingredients until slightly thickened (roughly 10 minutes).

Tamales Dulces:
Mix sugar and cinnamon into masa by hand. Taste dough for sweetness, add more sugar if necessary.
Drain raisins. Mix raisins and nuts into masa dough.
Scoop about 2 tablespoons masa and place in center on the smooth side of 1 cornhusk. Fold sides and bottom in. Tie husk with a string, or you may just leave it folded. Repeat with remaining cornhusks and filling.
Cook tamales in a tamale steamer or in a conventional steamer. Line tray or basket with cornhusks; place tamales on top. The tamales should not come in contact with the water. Steam tamales about 1 hour. They are done when masa no longer sticks to the cornhusks when tamales are unrolled.

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