Serves 4 as a main meal or 8 as a starter, if you half the tamales
Takes 70 minutes + minimum 2 hours marinading if making the pickled shallots
You will need: a steamer, food processor/blender, greaseproof/parchment paper
Tamales – stuffed Mexican sweetcorn parcels, usually cooked in sweetcorn husks, aren’t easy to get hold of in the UK, which is a crying shame as they are utterly delicious. This is an ingenious way of cooking them in greaseproof paper instead, using a steamer – either a metal or bamboo one. The red salsa is a flavour marriage from heaven, so isn’t really optional, but the pickled shallots and other accompaniments are up to you depending on availability of produce and your time to make them. It makes more salsa than you need but it freezes well. The pickled shallots are also more than you need but keep well in the fridge for a couple of weeks. I appreciate that Mexican ingredients are not readily available on the high street, but masa harina, dried oregano, hibiscus flowers, mulato chillies and dried epizote are available here online
For the tamales:
330g frozen sweetcorn, defrosted
10g unsalted butter
70 ml double cream
70g masa harina
2 tsp olive oil, plus extra for shaping
½ teasp baking powder
1 egg whisked
40g coarsely grated parmesan
40g coarsely grated smoked mozzarella, or hard mozzarella
1 teasp dried epizote (or dried oregano) – optional
Salt
Hibiscus pickled shallots:
60ml white wine vinegar
1 teasp caster sugar
1 hibiscus tea bag or a teasp hibiscus flowers
Finely pared zest of ½ lime
½ banana shallot, peeled and very finely sliced
Pinch of salt
Red salsa:
2 tbsp olive oil
½ red onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp snipped chives
1 tsp dried oregano
3 tomatoes, quartered
½ mulato chilli, stalk and seeds removed
2 tsp tomato paste
1.5 teasp caster sugar
To serve:
Green salad
Diced avocado
Chopped coriander
Sliced spring onions
Lime slices (left over from the pickle)
For the hibiscus pickled shallots (if making) combine all ingredients in a glass bowl and set aside for at least 2 hours or overnight. Discard the teabag just before serving.
To make the red salsa, put the oil and onion in a medium saucepan and gently fry for 8 minutes until soft but not browned. Add the chives and dried oregano and cook for a couple more minutes. Then add all the remaining ingredients along with 400ml of hot water and half a teaspoon of salt. Bring to the boil and simmer gently with the lid ajar for 25 minutes until slightly reduced and the tomatoes and chilli are completely soft. Allow to cool a little, then blend to a smooth paste. Keep warm
Once the red salsa is underway, make the tamales, by blitzing the corn in a food processor/blender until you get a wet mash. Put a large frying on medium heat and add the butter. Once melted, add the corn, cream, olive oil and ½ teaspoon of salt. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring a few times until the corn is cooked through and has the consistency of porridge. Remove from the heat for 5 minutes to cool a little, then stir in the masa harina, baking powder, and egg until well incorporated. It should have the consistency of playdough.
Cut 4 rectangles of parchment/greaseproof paper into 25cm x 16 cm rectangles. With lightly oiled hands, take a quarter of the dough and shape into a smooth ball. Place in the middle of one of the parchment rectangles and flatten to make a 15 x 9 cm rectangle. Mix the cheeses together in a bowl along with the epizote. Put a quarter of the cheese mixture in the middle of the dough, and gently smooth over the dough to encapsulate the cheese, making sure that there aren’t any cracks - you’ll end up with a tamale 12 cm x 6 cm. Fold the parchment on all sides to fully enclose the tamale, then place the parcel, seam side down, in a steamer basket. Repeat with the other three tamales. It is OK to stack them on top of each other.
Fill a large saucepan/the base pan of your steamer with plenty of boiling water. Pop the steamer basket(s) on top with a lid on and steam over a medium heat for 30 minutes. Leave to cool for a few minutes before unwrapping.
Meanwhile prepare the salad ingredients. Serve the tamales on a large platter, surrounded by the salad and salsas.