Seasonal Pantry: Tamales a classic, holiday treat

Although homemade tamales tend to be a Christmas specialty, they make perfect Halloween fare, too, especially now that we’ve grown accustomed to celebrating Día de los Muertos on Nov. 1 and 2. If posole is your Halloween tradition, as it has been mine for years, save this recipe for the winter holidays.

But if you feel like something different, you’ve got the weekend to make tamales. Stretching the work out over a full day or two can make it seem less overwhelming if you are new to the process. The best way to do this is to make the lard, cook the meat and soak the corn husks one day, then assemble the tamales the next day. At that point, you can cook and serve them, or refrigerate them to cook on the third day.

To make the best tamales, you need good lard, which is readily available these days at farmers markets and specialty shops. (See below for instructions.)

When it comes to serving your tamales, offer a lot of toppings and condiments. If you’re feeding a crowd, add Mexican rice, pinto beans, Mexican-style cole slaw, hot corn tortillas and guacamole and chips. For beverages, ice-cold Bohemia beer and agua frescas are ideal. (For several posole recipes and other Halloween dishes, visit “Eat This Now” at pantry.blogs.pressdemocrat.com.)

Pork & Green Chile Tamales

Makes about 24 to 30 medium tamales

1 package dried corn husks

2 pounds pork shoulder, with fat, cubed

1 small yellow onion, quartered

6 garlic cloves

- Kosher salt

2 tablespoons pork lard or olive oil

2-3 serranos, minced

5 poblanos, roasted, peeled, and diced

- Tamale dough (recipe follows)

2 limes, cut in wedges

1-2 avocados, cut into medium dice

- Chopped fresh cilantro

- Salsa fresca

- Mexican crema or sour cream

- Bottled Mexican hot sauce

Soak the dried corn husks in water overnight, then drain them. Put the pork, onion and garlic into a heavy pot, season with salt, and cover with water. Set over medium heat, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the meat is very tender, about an hour or a bit longer. Drain the meat and reserve the cooking liquid.

Melt the lard in a heavy skillet set over medium heat. Add the serranos and sauté until soft, 4 or 5 minutes. Add the poblanos and cooked pork and sauté, stirring constantly, for two or three minutes. Season with salt. Strain 1 1/2 cups cooking liquid into the meat, reduce the heat, and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the liquid is reduced by half. Set aside to cool.

Make the tamale dough

To make the tamales, set a large (5” x 6”) corn husk on your work surface. If necessary, use two husks together, overlapping the edges lengthwise. Put about 1/4 cup of tamale dough in the center and use your fingers to pat it out towards the edges of the husk; it should be about 3/8” thick.

Put about 2 tablespoons of pork filling in the center of the dough. Fold the outer edges of the tamale up so that they form a barrier that prevents the dough from squeezing out, then carefully roll the tamale into a cylinder, using your fingers to push the dough towards the center and tucking the husk into itself. Tie the ends very tightly with string or with a long narrow strip of husk.

When all tamales are made, line a steamer basket with some of the leftover husks and set the tamales on top, standing them on end so that they form a single layer and are not stacked on top of each other. Set over boiling water, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about 50 minutes.

Let cool for 5 minutes and serve right away, with lime wedges and other accompaniments alongside.

Tamale Dough

8 ounces (about 1 cup) lard

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 pound harina for tamales

21/2 cups chicken stock

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Beat the lard in a heavy duty mixer until it is white and fluffy. Mix in the salt and harina. Add the broth and the baking powder and mix vigorously, until the dough is very light and fluffy. The dough is ready when a spoonful floats in a bowl of water.

Fill the tamales as directed.

Variations:

Fill tamales with cooked black beans seasoned with garlic, onion and minced serranos; top with grated jack cheese before wrapping.

Fill tamales with grated cheese and poblanos that have been roasted, peeled, seeded and cut into medium julienne.

Fill tamales with cubes of baked winter squash (undercooked) tossed with garlic, chipotle powder, black pepper, raisins and a squeeze of lime juice. To serve, top with Mexican crema and minced fresh cilantro.

If you prefer chicken, use about 21/2 pounds of thighs that are boned, skinned and then chopped. Do not boil the chicken. Rather, add it along with the onions and garlic to the serranos and continue as directed, using chicken stock for the liquid.

Homemade lard

To make lard, you need about 2 pounds of pork fat, which is fairly easy to get these days. Check at your local market’s meat counter or at a specialty shop such as Sonoma County Meat Company. Some markets even have locally made lard.

To make your own, preheat an oven to 325 degrees. Chop the fat into cubes and discard any tough skin. Put the chopped fat, a handful at a time, into the work bowl of a food processor and pulse until the fat is evenly minced. Continue until all the fat has been processed.

Put the fat into one or two ovenproof skillets and set on the top rack of the oven; bake until all of the fat has rendered out, about 25 or 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, cool slightly and strain into a heavy-duty container, reserving any crunchy bits for birds, which love them. Cover tightly and store in the freezer or refrigerator. +

Email Michele Anna Jordan at michele@micheleannajordan.com and visit her blog at pantry.blogs.pressdemocrat.com.