Chaya Tamales Recipes

CHAYA TAMALES

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the corn husks to soak. Turn off the heat. They will need to soak for at least 30 minutes, and can soak up to overnight. Find some ratty looking husks and pull off strips to tie the tamales. You'll need a couple dozen.
• You can get masa for tamales at any Latin market. Just ask the counter for "masa for tamales." That means it already has the lard and salt in it. If you can find that, you don't need the masa harina, lard, or chicken stock.
• If you can't find premade masa for tamales, you can buy masa harina for tamales (masa harina is basically corn flour), and then you will need the lard and chicken stock. If you are going that route, put the chilled lard in the bowl of a mixer and whip it until it's fluffy. Change from the whip to a paddle. Then add the masa harina little by little, with the motor on medium, then add the salt and the chicken stock just until well combined. You now have your basic dough.
• It's your call if you want whole crunchy pepitas in your tamales or if you want them as just a flavor element. I grind mine in a spice grinder. You can chop them as a happy medium.
• Once you have your dough, mix in the chopped chaya, green chile powder and the pepitas.
• Take a corn husk and place the skinny end facing you. Put some of the masa in the center of the husk and enclose it with the husk, twisting the ends like an old fashioned candy wrapper. Tie each end with one of the corn husk strips.
• Get a large pot with a vegetable steamer set inside, or use a tamale pot if you have one. Fill up enough of the corn husk soaking water to come up to the level of the steamer, but not above it. Set each finished tamal in the steamer.
• When you are done, bring the water in the pot to a boil, cover the pot and steam the tamales for 1 hour. Let them set a good 10 minutes or so before serving them with the salsa of your choice. Cheese, cilantro and pickled red onions are all good accompaniments.