TECHNIQUES: Chicken Tamale's by Uncle Julio's 

Chicken Tamales Recipe by Uncle Julio's Atlanta

Chicken Tamale Filling
Yield: enough for 80 tamales

2 ounces butter
1/2 cup chopped yellow onions
1 pound chicken tenders, cartilage and tendons removed
Filling Sauce* (recipe included)

For the Chicken Tamale Filling
Heat butter in large sauce pan. Sauté onions for 1 minute. Add chicken and stir well. Continue to cook approximately 10 minutes until chicken is fully cooked and becomes light brown. Add 1 recipe Filling Sauce. Continue to cook for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring often. While stirring, mash chicken until it reaches a thinner consistency, breaking chicken down into small pieces. (A
potato masher works well for this.)


Filling Sauce*
3/4 pounds tomatillos
1 ounce jalapeños
1 bouillon cube
1/4 ounce chopped garlic



For the Filling Sauce
Put ingredients in blender. Pulse mixture until smooth, approximately 1 minute. *If you plan on serving the tamales immediately or within a day or so, make two recipes of Filling Sauce. One will be used to make the filling, and the other
to make the Green Sauce for the topping.


Chicken Tamales
corn husks, soaked in water
corn masa, prepared according to package directions
Chicken Tamale Filling (recipe included)
Green Sauce (recipe included)

Green Sauce
1/8 cup olive oil
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1 recipe Filling Sauce
1/8 cup shredded cilantro
For the Green Sauce
Heat olive oil. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add Filling Sauce, turn heat to high and stir constantly for 2 to 4 minutes. Turn off heat and mix in cilantro.

To steam tamales, place open end of each tamale (where the masa is exposed) on the outside of a steamer basket (either facing up or out, depending on type of steamer) so the filling will not fall out. Do not overcrowd tamales. Steam for 10 minutes. Remove tamales with tongs. Serve warm with Green Sauce on the side, and a gentle reminder to guests: remove the husks before eating!

For the Chicken Tamales

For each tamale, place a 4 1/2-inch wide husk in palm of hand. (If husk is too big, tear it down the side.)

Spread 2 1/2 ounces masa with spoon onto husk, covering an area approximately 4 1/2- to 5-inches long x 3-inches wide.

Place 1 ounce filling vertically in center of masa.

Press masa and roll tamale closed, making certain that masa covers filling.

Fold “tail” of husk under tamale. (Tamales may be frozen at this point. Simply wrap tightly in plastic.)