Rice and pork tamales - Nicaraguan Style
Ingredients
Tamale dough:
- 5 cups of MASECA® Tamale corn masa flour
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 1 green pepper
- 1 tomato
- 12 ounces of butter
- 2 cups of milk
- ¼ cup of bitter orange juice
Filling:
- 2 ½ pounds of marinated pork
- 1 pound of white potatoes, sliced
- 1 cup of uncooked rice
- 2 tomatoes, sliced
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 1 green pepper, sliced
- 20 green olives
- 2 sprigs of mint
- ½ cup of raisins
Pork marinade:
- 1 cup of bitter orange juice
- 1 tablesppon of annatto paste
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoon of ground cumin
- 2 teaspoon of onion powder
- 2 tablespoons of salt
- ½ cup of white vinegar
Tamales:
- Aluminum foil sheets, same size as the banana leaves
- Banana leaves
- Kitchen twine
Preparation
Pork marinade
- Blend all ingredients and cover pork with this mixture.
- Marinate for at least 2 hours
Dough for tamales
- Purée garlic, tomato, green pepper, and onion in a blender or mince and sauté in half of the butter.
- In a bowl combine MASECA® Tamale corn masa flour, milk, bitter orange juice, and the blended mix or sautéed vegetables until thoroughly mixed.
- Place the rest of the butter and a bit of oil in a pot. Add the batter to the pot, stir constantly until the batter is cooked and no longer sticks to the pot.
Tamale assembly
- Soak the raisins and uncooked rice in water for 2 hours.
- Place the banana leaves to form a “t” on a piece of aluminum foil.
- In the center, place 1 cup of cooked batter. Add the other ingredients in the following order: 2 seedless green olives, 5 raisins, 1 tablespoon of rice, 2 potato slices, 1 slice of green pepper, 1 slice of onion, 1 slice of tomato, 1 small sprig of mint and a few pieces of pork.
- Carefully fold the banana leaf to cover all the ingredients, then wrap the aluminum foil around the banana leaf. Make sure the contents are completely covered and tightly wrapped. Tie with kitchen twine, forming two knots.
- Place in a pot of boiling water and cook for 2 hours.
