Colombian Tamale Recipes

COLOMBIAN TAMALES

Steps:

• Prepare the marinade the night before you plan to make the tamales. Chop one bunch of green onions. Mince 2 garlic cloves. Combine, then add 1 teaspoon ground cumin and 1 packet of sazon. Rub mixture all over both chicken and ribs. Place meat in separate plastic baggies to marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
• Next make the "hogao," a kind of sofrito. Combine chopped tomatoes, 1 bunch of chopped green onions, 2 cloves minced garlic, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 packet of sazon, 1/6 cup of chopped cilantro, olive oil and salt to taste in a skillet and saute until everything is soft and tender, kind of like a mush. Cool and refrigerate until ready to assemble tamales.
• Now you can make the "pique" sauce. Combine 1 bunch chopped green onions, 3 cloves minced garlic, fresh lemon juice, remaining chopped cilantro, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, sugar, vinegar and salt to taste. Make this at least 2 hours before serving so flavors develop.
• Prepare masa harina according to package directions except use chicken broth in place of water and salt to taste. This mixture should have flavor unlike an arepa which is more bland (my husband says the masa is the best part). It should be fairly moist, but still stay together like a dough when pressed. If it is too wet you can still use it, it is just more messy.
• Now the hardest part is assembling them. Place about 1/4 cup of dough in the center of a banana leaf and spread it out. Put one rib and one chicken thigh piece on top. Place about 3 slices of the carrots, 6 potato sticks and 3 slices egg on top of the meat. Sprinkle with peas. Spoon 3 tablespoons of the "hogao" (sofrito) over all, then top with another 1/2 cup of spread out masa. This does not have to be uniform or even neat.
• Next pull up the sides of the banana leaf to form a packet. Tie with kitchen string, but do not let any of the filling seep out (I told you it was hard). If the leaves break just reinforce with extra banana leaves. Wrap packet in aluminum foil. Repeat 5 times.
• They are now ready to steam. Use a large Dutch oven with a steamer insert so the tamales do not touch the water in the bottom of the Dutch oven. These need to cook about 3 hours. You probably will have to replenish the water during the cooking process. Stack the tamales all the way to the top in the steamer pot and turn up the heat to high. If your pot does not hold all of them, just refrigerate or freeze the rest until you can steam them later. When you hear the water boiling furiously, turn the heat down to medium.
• Serve the tamales on a section of banana leaf. With the "pique" sauce on the side to be drizzled on bites of the tamale.

COLOMBIAN RECIPES - CABBAGE TAMALES

Steps:

• Prepare a stew of onions and tomatoes, chop the meat and toss with carrots and peas.
• Cook cabbage leaves in water without being too soft, remove from water and drain.
• Take each leaf and fill it with stew, tie the top and place in a pot. Spread each tamale with butter and cover with tomato juice and bring to medium heat until well seasoned.

COLOMBIAN TAMALES IN BANANA LEAVES

Steps:

• Put all marinade ingredients into blender and blend for 2 minutes. Divide marinade into two separate medium bowls. Add chicken cubes to one bowl, mix briefly, cover and place in the refrigerator. Add pork cubes to second bowl. Mix briefly, cover and place in the refrigerator. Leave both to marinate over night. The next day simmer meats separately in their own marinades in medium- sized saucepans for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, peel potatoes, slice them into 1/8" rounds and put them in a cup of water to keep their white color. Peel carrots and slice into 1/8" rounds. Cut banana leaves along grain every 4" resulting in 4" x 12" strips. Once meat has cooled to warm, drain juices from both meats into the instant cornmeal, add soy oil, and knead 5 minutes (adding small amounts of water or cornmeal as needed to make a workable dough). To assemble tamales, center a banana leaf strip on a square of aluminum foil. Shape about 1/2 cup of dough into a 1/8" thin oval by placing it on one side of a foot long piece of plastic wrap, folding the plastic over it and rolling a pin over it. Then place the thin oval on the left half of the banana leaf strip. Position 2 pieces each of chicken, pork, potato, carrot, and green olives on the oval. Once again, form a second oval with 1/2 cup of dough and place that on top of filling. Fold right side of leaf and aluminum foil over oval. Fold top and bottom of aluminum foil in towards center of oval and secure by pinching small folds to close the packet. This will leave one edge loose for steam to enter while cooking. Arrange packets in a spiral in a steamer (open end up). Steam over 2 inches of water for 1 hour, checking water level occasionally. Remove aluminum foil before serving. These freeze and re-heat beautifully.