http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/view?recipeID=118
Basic Tamal Dough
1 8-ounce package dried cornhusks
10 ounces (1 1/3 cups) rich-tasting pork
lard (or vegetable shortening if you wish), slightly softened but not at all runny
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 pounds (4 cups) fresh coarse-ground
corn masa for tamales
OR 3 1/2 cups dried
masa harina for tamales mixed with 2 1/4 cups hot water
1 to 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 1/2 to 3 cups
Pork in Red Chile Filling or
Chicken in Green Chile Filling
1. Prepare the cornhusks.
Cover the husks with very hot water, weight with a plate to keep them
submerged, and let stand for a couple of hours until the husks are
pliable. For forming the tamales, separate out 28 of the largest and
most pliable husks—ones that are at least 6 inches across on the wider
end and 6 or 7 inches 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.
2. Prepare the batter. With an electric mixer
on medium-high speed, beat the lard or shortening 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 of the broth.
Continue beating for another minute or so, until a 1/2 teaspoon 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
of broth 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.
3. 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. 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.
4. Form the tamales. Cut twenty-six 8- to
10-inch pieces of string or thin strips of cornhusks. One at a time,
form the tamales: Lay out one of your chosen cornhusks with the tapering
end toward you. Spread about 1/4 cup of the batter into about a 4-inch
square, leaving at least a 1 1/2-inch border on the side toward you and a
3/4-inch border along the other sides (with large husks, the borders
will be much bigger). Spoon about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the filling down
the center of the batter. 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 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.
5. Steam and serve the tamales. When all the
tamales are in the steamer, cover them with a layer of leftover
cornhusks; 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.
