Spicy Cajun Tamales Recipes

SPICY CAJUN TAMALES

Steps:

• Start off by sautéing the ground beef and onions until the beef browns and the onions become tender.
• At this point, strain the meat and drain off all but a couple tablespoons of the beef drippings.
• But keep it in reserve-you'll need it later.
• Then combine into the meat the Rotel tomatoes, the chili mix, the peeled tomatoes, the chili powder, the cumin, the water, and your salt and cayenne pepper.
• Now… bring the mixture to a slow boil… but as soon as the boil begins, reduce the heat to low and simmer everything together (with the cover on the pot) for about 45 minutes to an hour.
• Next, strain the meat again from the juices (but save the juices).
• Then put the meat back into the pot and stir in the cornbread mix and one cup of meat drippings you saved from the sautéing process.
• At this point, you can adjust the"spicyness" of the tamales by adding either more chili powder or cayenne pepper.
• Then mix everything together extremely well once more… and note- you want the tamale mixture to be moist and pasty, but not"wet".
• Finally, place about a tablespoon of the meat stuffing into the center of a moistened tamale paper, roll the paper around the tamale, and put the rolled tamales into a deep steamer pot.
• Then ladle over the tamales all the juices and drippings you reserved during the preparation process… and simmer everything on low for about 45 minutes.
• When you're ready to eat, serve them piping hot.

CAJUN HOT TAMALES

Steps:

• place all vegetable in a food processor until througly mixed.
• add mixture with meat.
• take your meal and place on paper or corn husks.
• add a good portion of meat mixture on meal and wrap oblong way.
• continue over and over place in steamer and steam for 2 hours.
• put chillie power/water/pepper/garlic power/1 can of tomato sauce of tamales.
• tamales can be frozen or canned.

HOT TAMALES (LOUISIANA STYLE)

Steps:

• Run onions, celery, garlic, and bell pepper through your food processor until they are finely minced.
• In a very large bowl, combine ground meat, minced veggies, chili powder, cayenne pepper, and salt. Mix together thoroughly using your hands. Add in the rotel, 1 cup of corn meal, and 1 can of tomato sauce; mix again. (You need to mix the wet ingredients in separately from the spices so that the spices don't all clump together in one spot.)
• Lay out your papers beside two baking sheets or trays. Add 1 cup of cornmeal to one baking sheet, to roll the tamales in (the other one is to stack completed tamales on.)
• Pinch off some of the meat mixture, and form into a ping pong sized ball. Roll it in the cornmeal, coating it as thick as you can. Place in the center of a tamale paper on one side, and roll. The ball should squish into a log, leaving an inch of the wrapper empty on either end. Press down the top of both empty ends, and fold the two sides of the ends in before folding them under the tamale.
• Repeat with the remainder of the meat mixture. After a few, you get the feel of how much meat it will take to fill the wrapper up enough. We got 75 tamales out of one batch, it depends on how big you make them.
• In a large dutch oven, pour in the 1/2 cup oil and 1 can tomato sauce. Cover with a layer of tamales, then a can of sauce, and a sprinkle of chili powder, repeating until you run out of tamales. Fill the pan with water until the tamales are just covered.
• Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer 2 - 2 1/2 hours till done, adding water if necessary.