Tamales

In Mexico, tamales begin with a dough made from a masa mix such as Maseca, and are generally wrapped in corn husks or plantain leaves before cooking, depending on the region from which they come. They usually have a sweet or savory filling and are typically steamed until firm.

Few countries have such an extensive variety of tamales as Mexico, where they're considered one of the most beloved traditional foods. Almost every region and state in the country has its own kind of tamale. It is said that there are between 500 and 1000 different types of tamales all around the country.

Tamales are a favorite comfort food in Mexico, eaten as both breakfast and dinner, and often accompanied by hot Atole or Champurrado.

The most common fillings are pork and chicken, in either red or green salsa or mole. Another very traditional variation is to add pink colored sugar to the corn mix and fill it with raisins or other dried fruit and make a sweet tamal (tamal de dulce).

Tamales became one of the representatives of Mexican culinary tradition in Europe, being one of the first samples of the culture that the Spanish conquistadors took back to Spain as proof of civilization. To make sweet varieties of tamales all you need are the ingredients below:

• 32 dried cornhusks or 16 x A5 sized pieces of greaseproof or wax paper
• 200g fine cornmeal
• 1 heaped tablespoon plain flour
• Pinch of sea salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 50g golden caster sugar
• 50g unsweetened desiccated coconut
• ½ a pineapple (approx 150g), peeled, core removed, halved and really finely diced
• Zest and juice of 1 lime

For an additional chocolate dipping sauce you will need the following:

• 200ml double cream
• 100g good-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), broken into small pieces
• 25g unsalted butter, cubed
• A pinch of sea salt

Once you have gathered all the ingredients required for this recipe prepare yourself and your work station and follow the steps below:

• If you're using cornhusks, soak them in a bowl of warm water or. In a separate bowl, mix the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, coconut and chopped pineapple. Add the lime zest and juice and pour in 200ml of water to bring everything together. Mix well, until you've got a thick, spoonable paste.
• Put a large pan of water on to boil – the pan needs to be big enough to fit a colander on top. Take a soaked cornhusk or piece of greaseproof paper and spoon a heaped tablespoon of your pineapple mixture into the middle of the husk or paper; if the husks are thin you might have to layer two on top of each other. Fold the sides in to cover the filling, then twist the ends and use string to tie them so they look like Christmas crackers.
• Lay your prepared tamales in a large colander or steamer, making sure they're all in one layer and not overlapping. Cover the top of the colander with tin foil and seal it nice and tightly. If you don't have a colander large enough you can always steam the tamales in 2 batches. Pop the colander on top of your pan of boiling water and steam for about 20 to 25 minutes. About 5 minutes before they're due to be ready, start making your chocolate sauce.
• Gently bring the cream to the boil in a pan on a medium heat. As soon as it starts to boil, take the pan off the heat and stir in your chocolate pieces until they're perfectly melted and combined. Add the cubes of butter and a pinch of salt and stir well until the butter is melted.
• Open one of the tamales to check that it's perfectly cooked – it should be solid and the wrapping should peel away from it easily. Take them off the heat and let them cool down slightly so they're cool enough to handle but still warm and delicious. Lay them on a platter next to a jug of your warm chocolate sauce and let everyone get involved and unwrap their own.