Success!! My vegan tamales came out great!

My mom would make Tamales for Christmas and since she passed away, I have carried on that tradition.  Definitely couldn’t stop just because I became vegan!!  There are so many different ways to make tamales without meat or dairy! Much healthier too. 🙂 Enjoy!

24 Corn Husks:

Soak in water over night.  Can also soak in hot water for 1 hour. Set a heavy item on top of husks to keep them submerged.

 Masa:

4 Cups Instant Corn Masa Flour

3 cups Vegetable Broth (preferably Bouillon)

½ cup Olive oil

1 tsp Baking Powder

2 tsp Salt

Mix all ingredients together with a wooden spoon and refrigerate.  Can be made a couple of days in advance.

Red Chili sauce for filling:

       

15 dried Chili’s (I use California)

4 Garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 tsp Cumin

½ medium onion, roughly chopped

2 ½ cups of Vegetable broth (I prefer bouillon mixed with the Chili soaking water)

Salt to taste

Soak Chili’s in hot water for 45 min.  Remove stems and seeds from chili’s.

Blend all ingredients in blender until smooth.  Transfer to saucepan and bring to boil. Stirring occasionally, simmer for 45 min,

Filling:

    

I made two different fillings.  TVP (Textured Vegetable/Soy Protein) and a vegetable (potatoes, carrots, peas, & spinach) mixture.  For the TVP mixture I reconstituted it with Beefless Bouillon liquid and seasoned it with Taco Seasoning.

Assembling Tamales:

Lay a husk on a flat surface with the long end at the top. Have the point or narrow end at the bottom. Place 2 – 3 tablespoons of dough onto the husk. Starting from the upper left hand corner spread the dough about 4″ across and 3″ down. Try to keep the dough approximately 1/4 inch thick.

Spread about a tablespoon of filling down the center of the dough. Add about 1 tablespoon of sauce on top of mixture.

From the masa covered left, fold the husk over the filling. Take the bottom of the husk and fold it up towards the top.

Set tamales upright in a steamer. Water should not touch tamales.  Cover tamales with damp towel and then put lid on.

Steam for about 2 – 3 hours, depending on how many you stack in the steamer.  When water gets low in pot, add more boiling water.

Serve with sauce of choice and enjoy!!