Tamales Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Find out how to make tamales at home with your filling of choice. This traditional Mexican dish is so simple and so tasty!

Prep Time1

Cook Time40

Total Time1 40

Course: Appetizer/Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: tamales

Soak the corn husks in a large bowl of warm water for 20-30 minutes until pliable.
6 ounces corn husks
Whisk together the masa harina, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
2 cups masa harina, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Add in the oil and beat with a hand mixer until combined.
½ cup vegetable oil
Slowly add in the broth while beating until it’s fully incorporated.
2½ cups low-sodium chicken broth
Continue beating on high speed for a few more minutes until the dough has a fluffy and creamy texture.
Pat the corn husks dry with paper towels.
Lay one corn husk on a flat surface with the wide end at the top. Place ¼ cup of the dough in the middle and use a spoon, spatula, or wet fingers to spread it out to ¼-inch thickness. Leave 2-3 inches at the bottom to allow room to fold up the corn husk.
Place a heaping tablespoon of filling in the middle of the masa dough.
1½ cups Refried Beans, 1½ cups Carnitas, 1½ cups Salsa Chicken, 1½ cups Barbacoa Beef
Fold in both sides of the tamale, so one side overlaps the other. Then, fold up the bottom.
Fill the bottom of a large pot with water. Place the steamer basket in the pot. Arrange the tamales in the pot vertically with the folded end down.
Steam the tamales for 40 minutes.
Remove the tamales from the pot, unwrap, and serve with your favorite salsa.

Nutritional information is for tamales filled with chicken. See individual recipes for nutritional information for beans, pork, or beef.
It's traditional to use lard in the dough instead of vegetable oil, but we wanted to keep it vegetarian-friendly. If you're not a vegetarian, give the lard-based dough a try.
To prepare in the instant pot, add 1 cup of water to the bottom of the pot, insert the strainer basket filled with tamales, and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes, or until the masa separates easily from the husks. Use quick release.