I recently had a chance, for the first time, to taste authentic Yucatan tamales at a local festival. By real, I mean traditional, pit-baked, straight from the ground hot tamales…coal dust and all!
Tamales are a staple for many regions throughout Mexico. The Mexican tamale is of Aztec decent so living in the Yucatan guarantees tamales can be enjoyed in great varieties any time of the day.
Tamales are made from a variety of fillings that are wrapped in corn dough then in a leaf. The leaves used to wrap the corn dough tamal are usually dried corn husks, however, banana leaves and chaya leaves are also used.
Once wrapped, the tamal is then steamed or boiled before being served. In my part of the world, tamals are traditionally baked in the ground before serving. The tamal is opened and the wrappers are discarded before diving into the sweet insides. Tamales are traditionally served with atole as a drink.
There are few countries that offer such an extensive variety of the tamal as Mexico. Every region here has their own preferred flavor and filling. Considered one of the most traditional foods, it is estimated that Mexico offers at least 500 different varieties of the tamale with an annual consumption of a few hundred million each year. That’s a lot of tamales!
Regional Varieties
The Sinaloa and Culiacan regions use pineapple, corn and sweet brown beans. Special occasions include both vegetables and meat.
Monterrey stuffs theirs with red chillies and shredded meat.
Michoacan prefers their corundas wrapped in fresh corn leaves but left unfilled.
Northwest Mexico uses banana leaves to wrap their pork and red chile.
Oaxaca’s large tamales are typically flavoured with the region’s black mole before being wrapped in banana leaves. Some corn husk versions can be found with a yellow or green bean filling and chepil herb.
San Cristobal de las Casa in the state of Chipas use a mole and pork to fill their banana leaf tamales.
Veracruz tamales consist of hoja santa seasoned pork or chicken and fresh corn wrapped in banana leaves.
The Yucatan traditionally uses achiote as their preferred flavor. Fillings include pork, chicken or a combination of both and usually cook their tamales in an oven or pit. The Yucatan also has tamales colads, which is a thin corn dough filled with tomato, chicken and achiote. There is also a vaporcitos version of the tamal which is a thin layer of masa (corn) on a banana leaf that is then steamed.
This region of Mexico, along the Yucatan Peninsula, usually pit-bakes their tamales. This wonderful way of enjoying tamales can be found during festivities and special occasions.
I had my first tamale many years ago in a different part of Mexico and have to admit that I was not a big fan. I remember disliking the sweetness of them. However this time around, the Aztec pit-baked tamales of the Yucatan region were incredible! Once you get through the hot banana leaf, you’re well on your way.
They were so good in fact, that I tried to eat two…and was successful…but over the course of almost an hour – and there were no filling atole drinks involved. They were so much better than my last memory of them. I’m glad I gave them another try!
