Tamales Oaxaqueños (Oaxacan-Style Tamales)

Stuffed with chicken and mole, these tamales Oaxaqueños (Oaxacan-Style Tamales), which come from the Oaxaca State in Mexico, are simple to make and absolutely delicious

📝 Ingredients

• 16-18 banana leaves cut into 6×5 inches (15×13 cm rectangles*)
• 1 lb cooked, shredded chicken ((450 gr))
• 1 cup ready to use mole** ((250 gr ))
• 1/3 cup lard or vegetable shortening ((60 gr))
• 1 cup olive oil
• 4 cups Maseca corn flour (for tortillas) ((500 gr))
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 cups chicken broth

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- Prepare the Banana Leaves ---
2. 2Once cut to the desired size, place them under running water to wash them well. Remember that they break easily, be careful.
3. 3Once washed, let them drain and finally dry them with a kitchen towel. When you dry them, do it from side to side following the lines of the leaves to avoid breaking them.
4. 4Heat a comal or a pan over medium-high heat and warm up the banana leaves. You will see that as they heat up they change to a lighter green color. They will become shiny, flexible and more resistant. Put them aside.
5. 5--- Prepare the Filling ---
6. 6Mix the cooked and shredded chicken with the mole until well integrated. Cover and set aside until ready to use.
7. 7--- Prepare the Masa for Oaxacan Tamales ---
8. 8Beat the lard or shortening until creamy, pour the olive oil and keep stirring until well integrated. This process can be done by hand, but if you prefer you can also do it with a blender.
9. 9Add the Maseca flour, salt, and baking powder and stir. Pour half of the chicken broth and mix. Add more chicken broth as needed until you get a dough that feels moist but not runny and it peels off your hand easily.
10. 10--- Assemble the Tamales ---
11. 11I recommend dividing the dough into 15-16 equal balls so that all the tamales are more or less the same size. Take a 1/3 measuring cup, fill it with the dough, take it out and form a ball of approx 2 inches (5 cm) in diameter. Repeat.
12. 12Take one of the banana leaves and place it on a surface with the paler green side up (this is the side where the filling goes) and with the lines horizontally.
13. 13Take one of the masa balls and place it in the center of the leaf. Spread it with your fingers or your hand to the desired thickness.
14. 14Place 1-2 teaspoons of the chicken mole in the center of the masa. Fold the top sheet so that it covers half of the filling, repeat folding the bottom.
15. 15Now wrap the tamal in the banana leaf, and fold the two ends down. If you wish, you can tie the tamales with kitchen twine.
16. 16Pour 3-4 cups of water into the bottom of a steamer or tamalera. Place a rack and cover it with some of the banana leaves that were leftover.
17. 17Put the tamales horizontally in the steamer and cover with the rest of the banana leaves, cover with the lid and wait until the water starts to boil.
18. 18When it comes to a boil, lower the heat to keep the water simmering. Steam the tamales for an hour.
19. 19Turn off the heat and let it rest for 5-10 minutes. The tamales are ready when they come off the sheet easily.
20. 20Put the tamales horizontally in a tamalera or steamer, cover them with a layer of banana leaves.
21. 21Cover the steamer and let them cook for approximately an hour or until the tamales open cleanly without the masa sticking to the leaves.