Yucatecan Tamal Colado
A masterpiece of southeastern Mexican cuisine: a strained tamal with an incredibly silk-smooth, almost custard-like texture, stuffed with savory achiote pork and steamed in a banana leaf.
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150 min
Hard
Yucateca
6 servings
The story behind
You have no idea what an absolute treasure this dish is, to me it represents the most elegant side of Yucatan's culinary heritage. The very first time I experienced it was during a trip to Merida, at a tiny hidden eatery in the historic downtown. When they brought it to the table and I noticed that delicate, almost bouncy, melt-in-your-mouth texture, it completely blew my mind. A local cook explained that it is called 'colado' because the corn dough is pressed through a cheesecloth multiple times until it is completely fine, without a single lump. It is a labor-of-love process but entirely worth it. Personally, I love having it for a late breakfast or brunch on a slow Sunday morning. It tastes heavenly if you top it with a spoonful of fried tomato salsa and some pickled red onions with habanero pepper for a nice punchy contrast. To drink, a hot cup of traditional Mexican water-based chocolate or spiced café de olla rounds out the morning beautifully.
Instructions
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1Completely dissolve the fresh corn masa in the cold meat broth using your hands until no large chunks remain.
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2Pass this mixture through a very fine strainer or a clean cheesecloth two or three times, discarding any heavy sediment so the base is perfectly silky.
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3For the filling, dissolve the achiote paste in the sour orange juice, mix it with the shredded pork, and cook it in a skillet with a touch of lard and the epazote sprig until slightly reduced.
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4Pour the strained corn mixture into a large heavy pot over medium heat along with the pork lard and a good pinch of salt.
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5Stir the mixture continuously with a wooden spoon without stopping; you will see it start to thicken up and turn shiny and translucent, resembling a thick custard.
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6Cut the softened banana leaves into rectangles, spoon a portion of the hot cooked dough into the center, add a spoonful of the pork filling, and carefully fold the leaf into a neat package.
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7Arrange the folded tamales inside a steamer pot and steam over medium heat for about an hour and a half until the dough effortlessly pulls away from the leaf.
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