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Tyler · Site Admin Joined: 06 Mar 2006 Posts: 12840

My grandmother was born in Guanajuato, Mex and I remember we used to make tamales at Christmas in the 60's and early 70's when I was a kid. She and my grandfather ended up in Vista, California. My mother never had a chance to write down her recipe. In the old days my mother said she would make the masa using a metate with the lye processed corn. In later years she used masa harina.

I remember her making pork, chicken and sweet tamales. The sweet ones had raisins and a bit of cinnamon I think. They were larger than the ones you see in Corpus - about the size of a box of 100mm cigarettes.

I think these might come the closest though she didn't use banana leaves.

http://www.fronterakitchens.com/cooking/recipes/recipe_porktamales.html
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Chef Lefty · Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2011 7:17 am Post subject:

Sorry Tyler, but this Gringo has never undertaken this task alone. Growing up I watched my grandmother and her friends make them. I always thought they were too much work. Laughing

And I know....it's a labor of love thing. Very Happy

Anyway, if you are taking requests, I will take a dozen black bean and jalapeno!!
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Tyler · Site Admin Joined: 06 Mar 2006 Posts: 12840

I'm making them from the hams from Deputydawg's feral hogs. Very Happy

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kweber · Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 2:32 am Post subject:

ya gotta cook them hog heads in a hole in the ground for real pork tamales
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deputydawg · Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 2:45 am Post subject:

MMMMMM....... tamales Very Happy

!!!!! We have a place in Houston that makes some good ones. If I get any done ill make sure and bring you a few. We tried making them one times years ago and couldn't pull it off.

ironmanstan · Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:33 am Post subject:

I do not like the tamales we get these days they are lean and to full of masa. Ilike the old school style like I grew up with down in the valley were you could see the pork right through the flat sides of the tamale. There would also be a little of that pork fat juice mixed with chili that would drip out of them but no chunks of fat or grissel inside. That was good tamales. Tamales now have a 3/8" masa coating with a pencil size pork filling. I think I could get into fabricating up some tasty tamales.
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Tyler · Site Admin Joined: 06 Mar 2006 Posts: 12840

Man I dropped the ball. The filling was good but I opted for the store bought pre-made wad of tamale dough and it was horrible. I found out my aunt has my grandmother's recipe. She's holding out until she gets a copy of my grandmother's chile relleno recipe from my mom. Very Happy

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Chef Lefty · Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2011 10:56 am Post subject:

rawlbay · Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2011 8:05 pm Post subject:

I have been using this basic recipe the last few years, based on the luck of the google:

http://www.sonofthesouth.net/tamales/Tamale_Recipe.htm

I was not fortunate enough to have an abuela, but those that did seem to like these tamales as well. They come out too mild (for my taste) with standard chili powder, but I can usually find chipotle chili powder from HEB, which is quite a bit hotter than regular - comes out just right for me. If I cant find that, I will throw some canned chipotles with the adobo sauce into the masa powder/broth mix, to taste.
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