🍽️ mainRank #3medium

tamales

Name: tamales
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 2 cups masa harina (corn dough); 1 cup cooked and shredded chicken or pork; 1/2 cup lard or vegetable shortening; 1 cup chicken broth; 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp salt; 10-12 soaked corn husks; 1 cup red chili sauce or mole

Tamales are traditional Mexican dishes made of masa (corn dough) filled with various ingredients like meats, cheeses, or chilies, wrapped in corn husks and steamed. They are a staple of Mexican cuisine and hold cultural significance in celebrations and rituals, symbolizing community and heritage.

8 ingredients

savoryspicyearthyrich

Culinary DNA Preview

Indigenous70%

Spanish30%

Ingredients

masa harina (corn dough)
2 cups
chicken or pork
1 cup cooked and shredded
lard or vegetable shortening
1/2 cup
chicken broth
1 cup
baking powder
1 tsp
salt
1 tsp
corn husks
10-12 soaked
red chili sauce or mole
1 cup

Method

Steps not available

Origin Story

Tamales date back to Mesoamerican civilizations where indigenous peoples prepared them as portable food for hunters and travelers. The dish reflects a deep indigenous culinary tradition blended with later influences.

Culinary DNA

Ingredient ancestry breakdown

Indigenous70%

ingredients+techniques

Spanish30%

ingredient_origin

Techniques

steaming mixing soaking folding

Stories about this dish

No stories tagged here yet — check back soon.

Browse

Latin Americacuisines →Foodways connections →