Best Chicken Tamales With Tomatillo Cilantro Sauce Recipes

GREEN CHICKEN TAMALES

Steps:

• Place corn husks in a bowl, cover with boiling water, and soak for 30 to 60 minutes. Drain, place on a work surface, and cover with a clean, damp towel.
• Place chicken in a pot, season with salt, and cover with water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until chicken is cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain chicken and shred with 2 forks.
• Place tomatillo and serrano peppers in a pot while chicken is cooking, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Cook until tomatillos are soft and have changed color, but are not falling apart, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Combine tomatillos, serrano peppers, onion, cilantro, and garlic in a blender; blend into a smooth sauce.
• Heat 1 tablespoon butter in a saucepan over medium heat and add tomatillo sauce. Cook until sauce has slightly thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add shredded chicken and season filling with salt.
• Beat remaining butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Add chicken broth, masa harina, baking powder, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and beat well until combined and the consistency of cookie dough. Test if the masa is ready by dropping a small ball of masa into a glass of cold water; if it floats, it's ready, if not, keep beating for a little longer.
• Select 1 wide corn husk or 2 small ones. Spread about 2 tablespoons masa mixture onto the the corn husk, filling it up to 2 inches from the bottom and 1/4 inch from the top. Add 1 tablespoon of filling down the center of the masa mixture. Fold sides of husk together, one over the other. Fold the bottom of the husk over the seam of the 2 folded sides. Repeat with remaining husks.
• Place a steamer insert into a saucepan and fill with water to just below the bottom of the steamer. Bring water to a boil. Add tamales with the open side up and cook until filling is heated through and separates from the husk, about 1 hour. Let tamales stand for 15 minutes before serving.

CHICKEN TAMALES WITH TOMATILLO SALSA

Steps:

• Place tomatillos, onion, cilantro, garlic, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules in a blender (this might take two batches, depending on blender capacity). Blend on high until smooth (if needed add 1 to 2 tablespoons water to ease blending).
• Heat the oil in a 3-qt container over medium high heat. Place the salsa in the container and cook until it turns a deeper green and reduces by ¼ (it should be thick).
• Mix the cooked shredded chicken with 1 1/4 cups salsa. Set aside the remaining salsa for serving once the tamales are cooked and ready to be served.
• Pull 1/4-inch strings from reserved husks to wrap the tamales (or use twine) and set aside. Cover the corn husks (including the pulled strings) with warm water and let stand until pliable (at least 30 minutes).
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix 2 cups of the broth, masa, lard, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon chicken bouillon granules, and baking powder. Beat with an electric mixer until well combined, adding the remaining chicken broth as needed to make a soft dough (the dough should be moist, but not sticky). Drain the corn husks and pat dry with paper towels.
• Place 3 level tablespoons of dough on each corn husk. Slightly spread the dough out, making an indentation in the center with the back of a spoon. Place about 1 tablespoon of chicken tomatillo mix on the center of the dough and fold dough around filling (if corn husks are too small, overlap 2 husks).
• Fold the bottom one-third of the corn husk over the filling and fold the sides in towards the center. Tie the tops with corn husk strings (or twine). In a 10 to 12-quart tamales steamer, pour boiling water under the steamer insert, almost touching it (the water should not touch the tamales when they are added).
• Stand the tamales inside pot, leaning against the sides all around. Cover and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer gently for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes or until the tamale dough becomes firm. Add more water if needed during cooking time. Let stand uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes.
• Carefully unfold each tamale by removing the string and opening the husk. To serve, carefully open the tamales and top with the remaining warm tomatillo salsa and a dollop of sour cream.

LAYERED CHICKEN ENCHILADAS WITH TOMATILLO-CILANTRO SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F. Mix tomatillos, chicken broth, and garlic cloves in large saucepan. Cover and bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat; simmer gently until tomatillos are soft, about 10 minutes. Transfer hot mixture to processor. Add sliced green onions, chopped cilantro, and sliced chile; blend mixture to coarse puree. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.
• Overlap 6 tortillas in 13x9x2-inch oval or rectangular baking dish. Top tortillas with half of chicken strips and half of mozzarella strips. Pour 2 cups tomatillo sauce evenly over. Top with remaining tortillas, chicken strips, and mozzarella. Pour 1 1/2 cups tomatillo sauce over, then whipping cream. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until bubbling, about 25 minutes. Cool enchiladas 10 minutes. Serve with remaining tomatillo sauce.

TAMALES WITH CHICKEN AND SALSA VERDE

Steps:

• Prepare cornhusks: Simmer the husks in water to cover for 10 minutes, weighting them with a plate to keep them submerged. Let them stand for a couple of hours until husks are pliable.
• To make the dough: Beat the lard in a mixer until very light, for about a minute. Add 1/2 pound (1 cup) fresh masa to lard. Beat until well blended. Continue beating, adding alternately the remaining 1/2 pound masa and the poultry broth, adding only enough broth to give consistency of medium-thick cake batter. Then sprinkle in the baking powder and salt. Beat 1 minute more.
• To make the salsa: Husk and wash the tomatillos. Put the tomatillos and 3 Serrano chiles and some salt in a pot of water and boil them until tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Then drain them and put them in the bowl of a food processor. Add the coriander, onion, and garlic. Process until smooth. Heat 1 tablespoon lard in a medium large skillet over medium-high heat. When the lard is hot enough to make a drop of the tomatillo puree sizzle, pour it all in at once. Stir the sauce constantly for 4 to 5 minutes until it gets darker and thicker...thick enough to coat a spoon. Add the chopped tomatillos and cilantro. Season with salt. Mix the shredded chicken with 1/2 cup cooked tomatillo sauce.
• To form the tamales: Remove husks from water when they have softened. Pat husks dry. Tear extra husks into 1/4-inch wide, 7-inch long strips -- one for each tamale. Take one that is at least 6 inches across on wider end and 6 to 7 inches long. Lay out this cornhusk with tapering end toward you.
• Spread a couple of tablespoons of dough mixture into a square, leaving at least a 1 1/2-inch border on side toward you and 3/4-inch border along other sides. Pick up two long sides of cornhusk and bring them together, overlapping one over the other. Fold up the bottom section of husk tightly right up to the filling line. Leave top open. Secure it in place by loosely tying one of strips of husk around tamale. Repeat with remaining husks and dough mixture.
• Stand tamales on the folded bottom in prepared steamer, being sure they are not packed too closely in steamer -- they need to expand. Cover with layer of leftover husks. Cover with lid and steam for 1 hour. Check carefully that all the water doesn't boil away, adding boiling water when necessary. Serve with additional salsa on the side.
• Suggested drink: Mexican beer

CHICKEN TAMALES

Steps:

• Cover corn husks with cold water; soak until softened, at least 2 hours., Place chicken, onion, salt and garlic in a 6-qt. stockpot. Pour in 3 qt. water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, until chicken is tender, 45-60 minutes. Remove chicken from broth. When cool enough to handle, remove bones and skin; discard. Shred chicken. Strain cooking juices; skim fat. Reserve 6 cups stock., For dough, beat shortening until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Beat in small amounts of masa harina alternately with small amounts of reserved stock, using no more than 2 cups stock. Drop a small amount of dough into a cup of cold water; dough should float. If not, continue beating, rechecking every 1-2 minutes., For filling, heat oil in a Dutch oven; stir in flour until blended. Cook and stir over medium heat until lightly browned, 7-9 minutes. Stir in seasonings, chicken and remaining stock; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 45 minutes., Drain corn husks and pat dry; tear 4 husks to make 20 strips for tying tamales. (To prevent husks from drying out, cover with a damp towel until ready to use.) On wide end of each remaining husk, spread 3 tablespoons dough to within 1/2 in. of side edges; top each with 2 tablespoons chicken filling and 2 teaspoons olives. Fold long sides of husk over filling, overlapping slightly. Fold over narrow end of husk; tie with a strip of husk to secure., Place a large steamer basket in the stockpot over water; place tamales upright in steamer. Bring to a boil; steam, covered, adding hot water as needed, until dough peels away from husk, about 45 minutes.

TOMATILLO CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a food processor, puree tomatillos; set aside. In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to pot, skin side down. Cook until browned on one side, 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
• Add jalapenos and onion to pot and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomatillo puree and hominy, if using; season with salt and pepper. Nestle chicken, skin side up, in sauce. Cover pot; simmer until chicken is cooked through, 22 to 25 minutes. Stir in cilantro; season with salt and pepper.

CHICKEN WITH TOMATILLO AND CILANTRO SAUCE

Steps:

• Move broiler rack into position closest to flame. Set broiler to medium. Place tomatillos and chiles on a rimmed baking sheet; broil until soft and blackened in spots, about 5 minutes. Turn; broil other side 5 minutes. Remove from broiler and transfer to a food processor; blend. Increase broiler heat to high. Place chicken on same baking sheet and sprinkle with salt. Broil chicken until browned, about 9 minutes. Turn; broil other side 9 minutes. Heat oil in a large saucepan over low heat; cook onion and garlic, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden, about 5 minutes. Add pureed tomatillos and chiles; simmer uncovered, 2 minutes. Add cilantro and 1 teaspoon salt. Gently place chicken in sauce. Simmer, covered, until meat is cooked through, about 20 minutes. Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds and cilantro. Serve with Roasted Kabocha Squash With Cumin Salt .