Real Homemade Tamales
These tamales are delicious! I have been looking for a good tamales recipe for years. One day I went to the international market and stood in the Mexican aisle until a woman with a full cart came by. I just asked her if she knew how to make tamales. This is her recipe with a few additions from me! This is great served with refried beans and a salad.
pork loin
1 ¼
pounds
onion, halved
1
large
garlic
1
clove
dried chile peppers
4
water
2
cups
salt
1 ½
teaspoons
dried corn husks
1
(8 ounce) package
lard
⅔
cup
beef broth, or as needed
1
(10.5 ounce) can
masa harina
2
cups
baking powder
1
teaspoon
salt
½
teaspoon
sour cream
1
cup
 Gather all ingredients.
  Make the filling: Place pork, onion, and garlic in a Dutch oven. Add enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until pork is cooked through, about 2 hours.
  Meanwhile, make chile sauce: Use rubber gloves to remove stems and seeds from chiles. Place chiles in a saucepan with 2 cups water. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
  Transfer chiles and cooking water to a blender and blend until smooth. Strain mixture into a bowl and stir in salt. Set aside.
  Shred cooked pork and mix in 1 cup chile sauce. Reserve remaining sauce for serving.
  Prepare husks and dough: Soak corn husks in a bowl of warm water until softened, about 30 minutes.
  While the husks are soaking, beat lard with 1 tablespoon broth until fluffy.
  Combine masa harina, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl; stir into the lard mixture, adding more broth as needed to form a spongy dough.
  Remove husks from water and pat dry. Spread dough out over husks to 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick.
  Place 1 tablespoon pork filling over center of each. Fold the sides, top, and bottom of each husk in toward the center to enclose dough.
  Arrange tamales in a steamer basket. Place over simmering water and steam for 1 hour.
  Remove tamales from husks. Drizzle with remaining chile sauce and top with sour cream, or mix sour cream into chile sauce first for a creamy sauce.
  Serve with your favorites sides, enjoy!
