The tamal (from the Nahuatl tamalli, which means wrapped) is a generic name given to several American dishes of indigenous origin generally prepared with cooked corn dough wrapped in corn husks or leaves of the same corn plant, banana, bijao, maguey, avocado or even aluminum foil or plastic wrap. They may or may not have a filling, which may contain meat, vegetables, chili, fruits, salsa, etc. They can also be sweet or salty.

Origin

The origin of the tamale has been disputed by several countries in America, however, there is not enough evidence to attribute it to any particular culture or country. Several varieties of tamales have been developed in almost all the countries of the American continent, especially in Mexico, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Central American countries, and other countries of America where corn has preponderance in the diet.

It should be noted that the origin of corn was probably in the central region of Mexico, from where it spread throughout the rest of America.

Although Mexico has the greatest variety of tamales of any country or region, this is not an indication of the antiquity of the tamale, since Mexico also has the greatest cultural diversity and each culture developed its own variant of corn.

Tamales are described in Mexico by Fray Bernardino de Sahagún in Historia General de las cosas de Nueva España at the beginning of the 16th century.

They also ate tamales in many ways; some of them are white and in the form of pella, made neither completely round nor quite square... Other tamales they ate that are colored....

-Fray Bernardino de Sahagún

Archaeological evidence shows the tamale as part of the daily life of some Mexican cultures in pre-Hispanic times, as well as being used in religious rituals, offerings and tombs. However, this evidence is very recent, for example, from the classic Maya period.

In Mexico

In no other country is there as much diversity of tamales as in Mexico. Each region and state has certain types of tamales, so many that their variety is estimated between 500 and 5,000 throughout the country. It is a very popular dish and some experts estimate the consumption of tamales in hundreds of millions annually.

Fray Bernardino de Sahagún narrates a certain superstition of the Indians:

Another abusion they had when they cooked the tamales in the pot. Some of them stick to the pot, like meat when it is cooked and sticks to the pot. They said that whoever ate that stuck tamale, if he was a man, he would never shoot arrows well in war, and his wife would never give birth well. And if it was a woman, she would never give birth well, because the child would be stuck inside her.

-Fray Bernardino de Sahagún

Today, tamales are an important part of the Mexican diet, very popular at Christmas parties, posadas and baptism celebrations. They are also used as offerings at the Day of the Dead festivities, celebrated on November 1 and 2, and in celebration of Candlemas Day, which symbolizes the end of the Advent period of the Catholic liturgical year.

Every year in Mexico City the Latin American Tamale Fair is celebrated during the first days of November, coinciding with the celebration of the Day of the Dead. In the week prior to February 2, the Tamal Fair is celebrated in commemoration of Candlemas Day.

As a curious fact, the tamale has its place in the popular sayings of Mexico, among which one that is still used is, "He who is born for tamale, the leaves fall from the sky", which refers to the fact that one cannot escape his destiny, or that providence favors those who are carrying out their life's mission.

Tamales from Mexico City

It is common to get the typical corn tamales with green or red sauce, accompanied by pork or chicken. The great demand for them has led to the birth of companies dedicated to their production and sale, such as Flor de Lis tamales (with a long tradition), Emporio and Tamalli tamales, from the center of the country, or Chata tamales from the state of Sinaloa.

In this city they are eaten either plain or inside a wheat bread (torta), a combination known as guajolota, accompanied by an exquisite atole.

Oaxacan Tamales

Traditionally made with corn dough and wrapped in banana or corn leaves (although they are less common). Generally pork or chicken with black mole, they can also be made with iguana meat, stuffed with yellow mole and chipilin.

Zacahuil

This is perhaps the tamale with the largest size and volume. Also known as party tamale, it is typical of the Huasteca region -which includes the mountainous areas of the Mexican states of San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Hidalgo and Querétaro, through which the Sierra Madre Oriental runs. This tamale, which is prepared in a metal vat, can measure up to three meters long and weigh up to 50 kilos. Because of its size, it is baked in a horizontal earth oven heated with wood embers. The dough, which is made of martajado corn (unlike most tamales in which the corn is ground much more), is painted a light red color with a dry chili powder. It is usually filled with pork or chicken, although this can vary at the request of customers. It is very common to find it in town squares very early in the morning, on Saturdays and Sundays. It is a dish that is served in abundant portions in a deep dish, on a roasted banana leaf, and is eaten with a spoon. It is accompanied with jalapeno peppers, onion steaks and sliced carrots, all pickled in water with vinegar and spices. As this is a dish that is regularly eaten for breakfast, it is commonly accompanied with café de olla, which is a black coffee sweetened with piloncillo and cinnamon.

Corundas and tamales from Michoacán

Corundas are originally from the state of Michoacán, but are known throughout western Mexico, such as in the states of Jalisco and Colima.

The word k'urhunda comes from the Purépecha language, typical of the indigenous people of the region, and translates into Spanish as tamale. Corundas are simple, made with vegetables, cheese and tequesquite stirred into the dough, wrapped in the leaf of the corn plant and given a triangular conical or pyramidal shape. They are also generally smaller than the tamales typical of the rest of the country. The corn used for the dough has often been boiled in ashes instead of lime. It is usually served with cream and green or red sauce. It is the main component of corundas soup, and an accompaniment to another typical dish, churipo.

It is worth mentioning that there is a variant of corundas, charikurindas, whose main ingredient is beans instead of corn. In addition to corundas, it is customary to make tamales filled with meat and chili, similar to the typical tamales of the rest of the country, although here they are called nacatamales.

The uchepo is another typical tamale of the state, generally sweet.

Sonoran Tamales

Sonoran tamales are thin and medium-sized.

The dough is ground in the (nixtamal), seasoned and the meat is cooked with onion and two garlic. The red or guajillo chiles are cleaned, soaked in hot water and liquefied. The filling is added with pork, beef, chicken or ground beef, carrots and peas. These ingredients are very spicy and the corn husks are often pigmented with the color of the chile.

Sinaloan Tamales

In addition to the typical Sinaloan tamales, other typical tamales are cooked in the state of Sinaloa, such as tamales tontos, made only of dough, without meat or other filling; and tamales barbones, typical of the coastal city of Escuinapa, made of shrimp and where the head and the 'beards' of the shrimp come out of the tamale.

Sweet and corn tamales

Sweet tamales are made with sweetened corn dough and filled with honey, guava jam, strawberry, pineapple, quince or other fruit. They are customary for children's birthdays and are usually Mexican pink, similar to magenta, although on rare occasions they are painted yellow, lime green or purple to give them a Mexican identity. Tamales de elote are also sweet, and are filled only with sweetened corn dough, wrapped with green corn leaves, sometimes containing some corn kernels.

In Chiapas there are also indigenous regions where tamales are made with banana leaves, in the style of the Mayan Indians, on Christmas and New Year's holidays. You can find these tamales in the north, south and east of the state.

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