Carnitas Tamales with Salsa Verde

By gnikylime

http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/basic-tamal-dough/, http://www.themijachronicles.com/2012/02/five-truths-about-tamales/, http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2015/05/tamales-green-chili-pork-recipe.html,
http://www.seriouseats.com/2015/05/how-to-make-mexican-tamales-corn-masa.html,
http://calliscrossing.blogspot.de/2015/05/homemade-beef-tamales.html, https://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/1049245032/pork-carnitas/, http://joepastry.com/2012/making-banana-leaf-tamales/, plus my own adjustments.

Ingredients

• Carnitas filling:
• 2pounds2 pounds [1 kg] boneless pork shoulder, skin removed (Alternately, about 2.25 kg chicken thighs)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2teaspoons2 teaspoons [2 Teelöffel] dried oregano
• 1teaspoon1 teaspoon [1 Teelöffel] ground cumin
• 1tablespoon1 tablespoon [1 Esslöffel] olive oil
• 11 onion, coarsely chopped
• 4cloves4 cloves garlic, minced
• 11 jalapeño, seeded and ribs removed, chopped
• 11 orange, cut in half
• 3tablespoons3 tablespoons [3 Esslöffel] vegetable oil
• 22 bay leaves
• One halfOne half of the prepared salsa verde
• Salsa Verde:
• 22 green bell peppers
• 2medium2 medium jalapeños
• 6medium cloves6 medium cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
• 1T1 T [1 Esslöffel] olive oil
• Salt
• 22 x28 oz [2x735g.] cans of tomatillos [Using canned since fresh not available in Germany]
• 6medium6 medium poblano peppers from 780-g. can [Using canned since fresh not available in Germany]
• 2cups2 cups packed roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems
• 1cup1 cup homemade chicken stock or low-sodium broth
• 1cup1 cup liquid from the cooked pork
• 4tablespoons4 tablespoons juice from 1 lime
• Sugar, to taste
• Tamales:
• 18-ounce18-ounce [510 g.] package dried corn husks or package banana leaves
• 10ounces10 ounces ( 1-1/3 cups) [283 g] pork lard, slightly softened but not at all runny
• 2t.2 t. [2 Teelöffel] (plus more for taste) Salt
• 1-1/2teaspoon1-1/2 teaspoon [1.5 Teelöffel] baking powder [Weinsteinbackpulver not Backpulver]
• 3-1/2cups3-1/2 cups [~350 g] dried masa harina for tamales mixed with 2-1/4 cups [590 mL] hot water or 2 pounds (4 cups) [~ 1 kg] fresh coarse-ground corn masa for tamales
• 1 to 1-1/2cups1 to 1-1/2 cups [236 to 355 mL] cooking liquid from carnitas, supplemented with chicken broth if need be
• Toppings:
• 1/21/2 of the salsa verde
• Shredded cheese
• Sour cream
• Hot sauce

Preparation

Step 1

1. Starting at least 13 hours before the tamales should be eaten, rinse and dry the pork (alt., chicken thighs) shoulder. Salt and pepper liberally. Mix the oregano and the cumin with olive oil and rub all over pork. Place the pork in a slow cooker and top with the onion, garlic, jalapeño, and bay leaves. Squeeze over the juice of the orange and add the two halves, cut side down. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours (for chicken thighs, 6 to 7 hours).

2. After the pork is cooked and while it is cooling, prepare the salsa verde. Preheat the oven to Broil / 250 C. Cut out the stems of the bell peppers and jalapeños and remove the ribbing and seeds. Toss the bell peppers, jalapeños, and garlic in olive oil and then salt. Roast in the over a couple of minutes until charred, turn over with tongs, and roast another minute. Put the roasted bell peppers, jalapeños, and garlic in a blender. Remove the stems of the poblanos. Add the poblanos, drained tomatillos, cilantro, stock, juices from carnitas, and lime juice to the blender. Blend until fairly smooth. Season further with salt and sugar to taste.

3. Once the pork has cooled, reserve the remaining cooking juice for use in the masa. Finely shred the carnitas by hand. (If using chicken thighs, make sure to remove the skin, gristle and bones in this step.) Mix half of the salsa verde with the shredded pork.

4. At least 4 hours before you want to eat the tamales, place the corn husks in a large bowl and cover with very hot water. Weigh the husks with a bowl filled with something heavy like dried beans to keep them submerged. They should be soaked for about 2 hours before being used to assemble the tamales.

5. At least 3 hours before you want to eat the tamales, begin to prepare the masa dough. With a stand mixer with paddle attachment (or an electric mixer on medium-high speed), beat the lard with 2 teaspoons salt and the baking powder until light in texture, about 1 minute. Continue beating as you add the masa (fresh or reconstituted) in three additions. Reduce the speed to medium-low and add 1 cup [237 mL] of the carnitas cooking liquid. Continue beating for another minute or so, until a 1/2 teaspoon [0.5 Teelöffel] dollop of the batter floats in a cup of cold water (if it floats you can be sure the tamales will be tender and light). Beat in enough of the remaining 1/2 cup [118 mL] of carnitas cooking liquid to give the mixture the consistency of soft (not runny) cake batter; it should hold its shape in a spoon. Taste the batter and season with additional salt if you think it needs some. For the lightest textured tamales, refrigerate the batter for an hour or so, then rebeat, adding a little more broth or water to bring the mixture to the soft consistency it had before if need be.

6. At least 2 hours before you want to eat the tamales, set up the steamer. Steaming 26 husk-wrapped tamales can be done in batches in a collapsible vegetable steamer set into a large, deep saucepan. Put one inch of water in the plant. Clean two coins well and then put them in the water so you can check that the water remains through the cooking process by the rattling. To steam them all at once, you need something like the kettle-size tamal steamers used in Mexico or Asian stack steamers, or you can improvise by setting a wire rack on 4 coffee or custard cups in a large kettle. It is best to line the rack or upper part of the steamer with leftover cornhusks to protect the tamales from direct contact with the steam and to add more flavor. Make sure to leave tiny spaces between the husks so condensing steam can drain off.

6. About 2 hours before you want to eat the tamales, assemble them. For forming the tamales, separate out 28 of the largest and most pliable husks—ones that are at least 6 inches (15 cm) across on the wider end and 6 or 7 inches [15 to 18 cm] long. If you can’t find enough good ones, overlap some of the large ones to give wide, sturdy surfaces to spread the batter on. Pat the chosen husks dry with a towel. Cut twenty-six 8- to 10-inch [20- to 25-cm] pieces of string or thin strips of cornhusks. Fill a small bowl with water to prevent sticking.

One at a time, form the tamales: Lay out one of your chosen cornhusks with the tapering end toward you. Try to put the shinier side up. (If using banana leaves, cut them into 10x10 sq in [25x25 cm^2] pieces. Quickly heat each one in a dry pan on both sides before using. Then brush with lard on the inside before spreading the batter on the leaves.)

Spread about 1/4 cup [4 Esslöffel] of the batter into about a 4-inch [10-cm] square, leaving at least a 1-1/2-inch [4-cm] border on the side toward you and a 3/4-inch [2-cm] border along the other sides (with large husks, the borders will be much bigger). Spoon about 1-1/2 tablespoons [1-1/2 Esslöffel] of the filling down the center of the batter using a spoon wet with water. Pick up the two long sides of the cornhusk and bring them together (this will cause the batter to surround the filling). If the uncovered borders of the two long sides you’re holding are narrow, tuck one side under the other; if wide, roll both sides in the same direction around the tamal. (If the husk is small, you may feel more comfortable wrapping the tamal in a second husk.) Finally, fold up the empty 1 1/2-inch [4-cm] section of the husk (to form a tightly closed “bottom” leaving the top open), and secure it in place by loosely tying one of the strings or strips of husk around the tamal. As they’re made, stand the tamales on their folded bottoms in the prepared steamer. Don’t tie the tamales too tightly or pack them too closely in the steamer. They need room to expand.

7. Steam and serve the tamales. When all the tamales are in the steamer, cover them with a layer of leftover cornhusks or a damp dishtowel; if your husk-wrapped tamales don’t take up the entire steamer, fill in the open spaces with loosely wadded aluminum foil (to keep the tamales from falling over). Set the lid in place and steam over a constant medium heat for about 1-1/4 hours. Watch carefully that all the water doesn’t boil away and, to keep the steam steady, pour boiling water into the pot when more is necessary. Tamales are done when the husk peels away from the masa easily. Let tamales stand in the steamer off the heat for a few minutes to firm up. For the best textured tamales, let them cool completely, then re-steam about 15 minutes to heat through.

8. To serve the tamales, unwrap the corn husks and top with salsa verde, shredded cheese, sour cream, and hot sauce.