The history of tamales is lost in the mists of time. That means that if you are a stan for chronologies and dates you are in for a big disappointment.
However, fortunately something is certain. Countless tamal (tamal is the singular form and tamales is the plural) recipes survived, and thrived, despite having to endure the brunt of the eroding passing of countless centuries.
Do me a favor, close your eyes and point to a random spot on a map of Mexico. Done? Well, I bet my pinky toe (and I don’t do this lightly as I am very fond of that appendix) that they have a very particular tamal recipe there that will be completely different from another town.
Shapes
For starters, they can be shaped in a variety of ways. We have flat and rectangular tamales in Veracruz and Oaxaca, cone triangular shaped in Michoacan and cylindrical in Mexico City.
Wrappings
The wrapping comes in several materials too, from aluminum foil (if you are pretty desperate; I know I have been!) to banana leaves, with corn husks (green or dried, your choice) being the most commonly used, especially in Mexico City.
Ingredients
The main ingredient runs the gamut from protein like pork, chicken, fish, shrimp or just cheese, to mushrooms or cactus. And so does the salsa that usually goes inside savory tamales.
You can cast your tamales in the leading role when you fix them as your main dish. Or you can make them sweet for dessert. Additionally, they can be used as a substitute for bread in which case they are neither savory nor sweet.
Also, you need to add some kind of fat, either pork lard of butter, or even good old Cisco, to your tamal masa (dough) for soft and rich results and add an equal proportion of liquid; broth when you prepare savory tamales or milk for sweet tamales.
Versatility
Despite being as ancient as the Teotihuacan pyramids themselves, they keep up with modern trends. They adapt to the times with vegetarian and vegan tamal varieties.
And, to top it all, you can serve them just steamed straight out of the pot , or fried or, if you are genuinely ravenous, even eat them as a “Guajolota” torta (yes, let that image sink in! we are prone to gluttony, indeed!!!). All this and more!
So, going full circle we ask again, when and where they originated? We don’t really know. We are only certain that happened somewhere in Mexico or Central America. The when is even harder to answer. Let’s focus in what we know.
And that is, Tamales are here to stay, to thrive, to take on different forms, shapes and ingredients and still be versatile, wonderfully delicious and filling. Explore and enjoy by making this delightful Mexican classic: Green Salsa and Chicken Tamales, with more recipes to come in the future!
y que me dices de los zacahuiles que los hacen enveces de 1 metro o mas de largo
Son los que a veces miden hasta 5 mts, no? De puerco creo. No me comprometo a hacer uno de esos, jajaja! Si a probarlo cuando visite aquellos lares!