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"*" See Kitchen Notes for more information or links to special ingredients.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Lay the corn husks in a flat casserole dish. Pour the boiling water over the corn husks. Place another dish on top to submerged the corn husks.
In a large bowl, combine the masa harina and salt. Stir to combine.
Transfer a few of the husks from the water to a plate or bowl. Take one of the smaller, thinner husks and pull lengthwise into long thin strips that will be used for tying up the tamales.
Add some water to the bottom of a steamer below the steaming rack.
Cover and steam for an hour*. After an hour, remove the cover and let the tamales sit for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove a tamale and test for doneness. If the tamale pulls away from the husk, it’s done. If it sticks to the husk, steam for another 15 minutes and let rest again. (Before reheating, make sure you have enough water in the bottom of the steamer.)
Assembly – Mixing the chicken filling in with the masa saves A LOT of time compared to the traditional method of tamale assembly. If you want bigger tamales, add more masa mixture to each corn husks. Just be careful not to make them too thick. If the tamales are too thick, they will take longer to steam.
Chicken – This is a great recipe for leftover chicken or turkey. If you don’t have leftover chicken, then cook some chicken thighs and/or legs in 5 to 6 cups of water. Use the cooked meat for the tamales and the chicken broth for the masa liquid.
Chicken or Vegetable Broth - If you don't have any homemade broth, you can easily make it using a base like Better Than Bouillon or just use water.
Red Chile Sauce -The amount of red chile sauce depends on how hot the sauce is and how hot you want the tamales to be, but this is where it becomes tricky. The masa suppresses much of the heat from the chile, so it’s best to add more than you think you need. For this batch I use 2/3 cup HOT chile sauce. These tamales are deliciously spicy but not so hot as to require a glass a milk as a chaser.
Recipe author: MJ of MJ's Kitchen