Did you know that tamales are a Christmas tradition in many countries? Assembling a mass of tamales for easy holiday dining is usually a family affair. From Argentina to the American southwest, this holiday tradition gets everyone involved in the kitchen.. I like to serve this variation of tamales because it has all the flavors of tamales without all the extra dough. This recipe is for four individual tamales servings
Le Creuset Set of 4 Stoneware Petite Au Gratin Dishes, Cherry
Shopping List – two boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
(1/2 C chopped) peppers – for fresh, use a bell or combo of anaheims and 1 jalapeno – or use canned chili’s with medium heat
(3/4 C, sliced thin)one small onion
cheese of your choice (jack, cheddar or quesa fresca – a white mexican cheese)
**chili powder
**chicken base or bullion
**garlic cloves
**cumin – check the mexican spices – they sell soft packages of spices for much less than the regular spice aisle
**butter, flour
**Eliminate these if you are buying canned enchilada sauce equal to two cups**
Cabbage – check the other “topping options” – add what you need in your shopping list
Masa for tamales – labeled commonly as instant corn masa mix, available in the latin/mexican area of your grocery store.
The layers of the tamales or pie consist of:
A bed of masa
Layer of onions and peppers
Large chunks of shredded chicken mixed with the “rojo” or red chili sauce
1 C Shredded Cheese
Toppers of:
shredded cabbage
cilantro sprigs (*optional)
avocado slices or guacamole (*optional)
sour cream (*optional)
olive slices – green or black (*optional)
Have two defrosted, deboned chicken breats. In a 2qt (or larger) pot with a tight fitting lid – Bring water to a roiling boil, add a Tbsp of chix base (or bullion or nothing) – while its boiling hard drop in your two chicken breast halves and cover tightly. As soon as it comes back to a boil (*which should be less than a minute or two) – turn off the heat and let sit undisturbed for 30 minutes. This is a great way to “poach” chicken for dishes where you want the meat precooked or shredded. Eventually pull each breast out and shred the meat – two forks will do this if you do not want to use your hands. Plan on 1/3 lb of meat for each adult. *Shortcut, do this while you are making dinner the night before and store the chicken ready to shred for use tomorrow.
Prepare the Masa – check the package for directions – its easy to make, for four open face in I use 1.5 C of masa with 1+1/3 C of chicken broth and 1/3 C of vegetable shortening. Usually the package will call for lard, but crisco works quite nicely – set aside.5
If you are using fresh peppers, slice finely and brown quickly over hi heat with the sliced onion -set aside *Shortcut – you can substitute canned chilis – just brown the onions
Make the Rojo sauce – *Shortcut – you can substitute canned red enchilada sauce – the real red chili sauce is worth the small effort to make it!
Chop 1/2 onion, fine
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsp butter (oleo)
1 tbsp flour
2 tbsp chili powder
dash cumin
2 C chicken stock
In a sauce pan, cook the onion in the oleo, then add the garlic – cook 1 more minute. Add the flour, chili powder and cumin. This forms a rue – allow this to cook for a couple of minutes (this takes the flour taste out). Add 2C of stock slowly & stir until sauce is smooth. Let this come to a simmer, thin with additional broth or water if it gets too thick.
****This is an awesome, all around red chili sauce for tamales, enchiladas, eggs, over rice or beans – about anything you want a “mexican” flair to.***
This sauce will keep for an hour or so on the stovetop – just stir it occasionally.
To assemble the open face tamales – spread a layer of masa in your baking container(s). Top the masa with the layer of cooked onions and peppers – spread evenly. Mix 1 Cup of chili sauce with the shredded chicken and spread on top of the onion & pepper layer in a chunky layer. Top this with shredded cheese – Bake for 25 minutes in oven at 325. For individual servings – top with some of the shredded cabbage, and any other toppings you opted for. Serve the additional rojo tableside.
Served with beans, and my chopped guacamole salad – this is a hearty and savory meal.