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Red Pork Tamales – I can’t count how many times I’ve sat in my grandmother’s kitchen making them. I don’t have enough fingers and toes. Lol.
All of us crowded in her tiny kitchen smearing and filling and folding. There are hours of stories that will forever be with me.
This is where I tell you that my family is from Durango, Mexico, and every family, every town has their own version, their own recipe. Adapt this recipe to make it your own.
This is pork shoulder, but you can also use pork butt.
If this is your first time making Red Pork Tamales, use boneless pork butt. It’s a cut that’s a lot easier to work with.
More Mexican Tamales Recipes:
Chicken Mole Tamales
Beef Tamales, Tamales de Res
Jalapeno and Cheese Tamales
Chicken Salsa Verde Tamales
Some of you might be thinking it’s a lot of work to remove the skin.
See the fatty outer layer? If you have a good, sharp knife, it’s not so bad.
Why to use pork shoulder over pork butt? The bone is going to give our meat tons of flavor.
That and pork shoulder was on sale. Lol. No bones about it.
Place all the pork pieces in the pot.
Use the biggest pot you have in your kitchen like a 12-quart stockpot.
Or, borrow one from your neighbor if necessary. It’s a great way to make new friends! Promise them Tamales de Puerco.
Just in case you are feeding some non-meaters, here are some Vegetarian Tamales:
Northern Style Bean Tamales
Vegetable Tamales
Mushroom Tamales
Tamales Dulces
You can’t take out salt. Add 1 ½ tablespoons of salt to the pot.
You can always adjust the salt content later.
Then, add a whole garlic bulb and an onion to the pot.
You need plenty of water. It’s going to make a pork broth that we will use for later in the recipe.
Cook for 2 hours.
Great Idea: You can also make this in the slow cooker ahead of time the day before.
Cooked pork lasts up to 5 days in the fridge.
- Separate the corn husks. They tend to stick together.
- Remove any debris and hairs.
- Use warm water to cover the husks.
You also need something heavy so they can be fully submerged. Rocks, bowling bowls, or in my case, a heavy plate.
Pro Tamale Making Tip:
Soak the corn husks overnight. That way they are ready to go in the morning.
Once your pork is fully cooked, remove the meat and save the broth. It’s porking awesome!
Shred the pork meat with two forks. Fork this pork! Fork it real good! lol.
Place the shredded pork in a large pot and make the sauce.
To make the red chile sauce is very easy. Ancho you glad it’s so easy. 😉
We need ancho chile and guajillo chile.
- Take the stems off and cut in half.
- Then remove the seeds.
If you don’t live near a Mexican market, you can always buy ancho chile and guajillo chile on Amazon.
- Place all the chiles in a pot.
- Add water and bring to a boil.
- Immediately turn off the heat.
- 5 minutes later, the chiles will be fully reconstituted.
The chiles will be pliable to use.
Discard the water. I’ve started to stop using the chile water to make sauces. In Mexico, dried chiles are very dusty.
One time, I even found a bug in the chile. Yuck!
Whole cumin is an important ingredient in Northern Mexican dishes.
If you have ground cumin, that’s fine too. You can’t substitute it either.
Remember the pork broth?
It’s liquid gold. You don’t have to dig in a mine for this stuff, but it is MINE to enjoy!
I will even use the onions and garlic from the broth itself. All of that will add flavor to the tamales de puerco.
Blend until smooth. You might need to do this is stages. We are using several chiles and lots of broth.
Strain through a strainer to remove any remaining chile pieces or pieces from the pork broth. Next, reserve ½ cup of the red chile for the masa.
Note: If you have a really good blender that blends everything clean, you might not need to strain. If you see any particles of the chile in the sauce, then by all means, strain!
Add the rest of the red chile sauce to the shredded pork. Coat the meat well with the sauce.
- If you want it saucier, here’s you chance to add some pork broth.
- Cook for about 20-30 minutes.
Let it cool before you start assembling your tamales.
Advice for Beginners:
If this is your first time making Red Pork Tamales, buy prepared masa. It will save you tons of time.You can also make your own Masa for Tamales or use a healthier version of masa with oil.
The final step is to add the red chile sauce to the masa and mix well.
I do this by hand, but you can also do this with a mixer. Your masa will look orange-y. Orange you glad you’re making tamales! Haha!
To assemble the Red Pork Tamales, start by shaking off some of the excess water from the corn husk.
Shake it off swiftly! (Insert Taylor Swiftly)
- Cup with the palm of your non-spreading hand.
- Spread the masa evenly on the corn husk stopping halfway to the top and all the way down the bottom.
There’s a natural curve to the corn husk.
The thrill of the fill.
- Add the pork filling to the center of the masa.
- Be careful not to add too much of the sauce, or it can spill.
You can add more sauce if you like. To each their own.
To start with, fold one side of the corn husk in.
Fold the other side of the corn husk in.
Lastly, fold in the pointy top to the center of the corn husk.
Caution: Carefully place the uncooked Pork Tamales in a container standing up while you assemble. You want the open side up, or the filling might fall out.
- Add water to the bottom of the steamer and place all the tamales inside.
- Again, they should be open side up.
- Cover with a more husks and place the lid.
- Steam for 1 ½ hours to 2 hours.
Make these tamales in half the time using an instant pot. See my recipes for Instant Pot Pork Tamales and Instant Pot Chicken Tamales for more details.
After 60 minutes of cooking, carefully move the tamales aside to create an opening and add more hot water.
The tamales are ready when the tamal pulls away from the corn husk easily.
If the tamales are not ready after 1 1/2 hours, see if there is water in the pot. Add water if necessary, and steam for another 1/2 hour.
HOW LONG DO TAMALES LAST?
Place tamales in a large plastic, sealable bag. Remove as much air as possible.
They last up to 5 days in the fridge and up to 6 months in the freezer.
HOW TO REHEAT TAMALES:
Steam refrigerated tamales in a steam (same as before) with the opening up. 15 minutes. For frozen tamales, 20-25 minutes.
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Red Pork Tamales + VIDEO
Ingredients
- For the Pork Filling:
- 4 1/2 pounds pork butt or shoulder chopped in pieces
- 1 head of garlic
- 1 onion
- 12 dried chile ancho stems and seeds removed
- 1/2 tablespoon whole cumin
- Salt and pepper
- Pork broth reserved from the cooking
- For the Masa Dough:
- 2 ½ - 3 lbs of prepared masa
- 1 cup of red chile sauce reserved from the pork filling
- You Will Also Need:
- 40-45 corn husks
- A large steamer pot
- Water
Instructions
- In a large stock pot, add the pork pieces.
- Add all the garlic, onion, 1 ½ tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.
- Cover with water about 2 inches above all the pot contents.
- Place a lid on the pot and cook on low for 2 hours.
- In the meantime, soak the corn husks in warm water.
- Place an object on top of the husks that’s heavy enough so they can soak.
- Once the pork is fully cooked, remove the meat from the pot and let cool.
- Reserve the liquid from the pot.
- To prepare the red chile sauce:
- Remove the stems and seeds from the chiles.
- Place the chiles in a pot and cover with water.
- Bring the pot to a boil.
- Immediately turn off the heat.
- Let the chiles soak for 5 minutes or until pliable.
- To a blender, add the rehydrated chiles, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ tablespoon cumin, and 3 cups pork broth (from the reserved pork liquid).
- Blend until smooth.
- Taste for salt. Add salt, if needed.
- Strain the chile sauce.
- With the back of your spoon, push the sauce through the strainer.
- Reserve 1/2 cup of the red chile sauce, and set aside until ready to use.
- Once the pork is cool to the touch, shred the pork meat with two forks.
- Add the shredded pork meat to a large stock pot.
- Pour the remaining red chile sauce to the pork and 1 cup of the pork broth.
- With your tongs, coat the meat.
- Cook for 15-20 minutes.
- (If you are making a saucier meat, cook for 30 minutes).
- Let cool slightly before assembling tamales.
- For the Masa:
- Add ½ cup of the reserved red chile sauce to the prepared masa.
- Mix well until the chile sauce is fully incorporated.
- The masa will have an orange color.
- You can do this by hand or in a mixer.
- To Assemble:
- Shake off water from the corn husk.
- Place the husk in your hand.
- Spread about 2 tablespoons of masa on the corn husk
- (Depending on the size of the corn husk you might need more or less masa).
- Only spread the masa on the bottom and halfway to the top.
- Take a tablespoon of the pork filling and add to the center of the masa.
- Fold one side of the husk in. Then the other.
- Fold the pointy top over to the middle of the corn husk.
- Set aside.
- Continue assembling until you no longer have corn husks or filling.
- Fill the bottom of a large steamer pot with hot water.
- Insert the steamer and add your tamales with the open side up.
- Place corn husks on top of the tamales.
- Cover with a lid.
- Cook on low for 1 ½ hours - 2 hours.
- Add hot water as necessary.
- Turn off stove and let stand for 15-20 minutes before serving.
- The tamales are ready when the tamal pulls away from the husk easily.
Video
Notes
- Make the filling and masa beforehand.
- Soak the corn husks the night before.
- Buy prepared masa and mix it with the chile sauce.
I have never made this recipe before, and now that I have seen the pictures I am planning on trying this out asap! This looks delicious and your instructions are very detailed and will be very helpful for when I make this! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Hope you do. I think people don’t understand that tamales are not hard. They’re just time consuming. Do as much as possible ahead of time to save yourself time. Enjoy!
You gave amounts for spices for the masa. Do I need to use all or some? Never having made tamales before, not sure what flavor I’m shooting for
Hi Carol, congrats on trying to make tamales! If you’re not afraid to taste the masa, I’d taste the masa as I was adding the spices. The red chile sauce in this recipe is very flavorful and adds tons of flavor to the masa. The other thing you can do is not add the red chile sauce to the masa and just leave it with the pork. The tamales will still be delicious. Hope this helps!
First timer here and coming from a Mexican family where my mom’s side are all from Durango MX is a bit embarrassing 🙈…now I live in the open countryside of Kentucky and sadly cannot find any authentic Mexican food. So I’m going to be brave and attempt to make these tamales! One question I do have is you said to use ancho and guajillo chiles but in the recipe it only says 12 ancho chiles…is it 6 ancho 6 guajillo?? Thanks in advance!
Hey there! I’m from Durango! 🙂 You can do a combination of the chiles or all guajillo or all ancho. Whatever you like. Personally, I prefer a combination of the two. Hope you enjoy the tamales.
I agree with the other post so would it be 12 of guajillo and 12 ancho chiles combined ? Or 6 of guajillo and 6 ancho? Please give amount that should be used as I would like to use both.
Use 12 chiles in total – either ALL guajillo or ALL ancho or a combination of the two. Personally, I prefer to use a combination of the two. Typically, more guajillo (like 10) and 2 anchos.
Thank you!! I will be making these for Christmas I’ll let you know how it came out. If I was to cook the meat in the slow cooker how long should I cook it ? And on what heat level?
Cook for 6 hours on low, or 4 hours on high.
Thank you so much for this recipe!!
So glad you liked it! 🙂
This dish looks absolutely delicious and yummy! Plus it’s a cool way of cooking slowly as it brings out the best taste of this recipe! Loved it!
Yes, the flavors develop. The best of the best!
What are your thoughts on preparing and storing in fridge the day prior to steaming to help save time “day of”? Do you think the masa will become a lil dry?
I do this all the time. If the masa is a little dry, add a splash of water and mix it. Don’t add too much water or you’ll need to add some oil too. The red pork tamales will come out just as tasty.
These tamales were the best. Everyone said they were very flavorful and addicting to the taste. This is definitely the recipe I will always make. Thank you for sharing.
This is my grandma’s recipe for red pork tamales. So glad you enjoyed them!
I love tamales and this one looks really good.
I will make this at home and I hope it will turn good as yours.
Hope you do. They’re so so good!
I love eating tamales, but have never tried making them at home. After watching your video, I think I can handle making them!
Yes you can! Try them. You won’t regret it.
My dad asked what kind of salsa do you put on them before you eat them?
I like red chipotle salsa or a tomato habanero. Even just a basic salsa roja goes good with these red pork tamales. But really, it’s up to you and your taste.
Hi. My friend and I usually make about 60 tamales each year at Christmas. I like your mix and I will try it this year. One thing: I notice you do not use any Oregano. I live in Jalisco – maybe it’s a regional difference?
Our secret to light and fluffy masa: Nice clean lard, and lots and lots of air whipped into the dough. And, of course, liquid from the pork filling. Melts in the mouth.
Great advice! We are big cumin people in Durango. If that’s what you like to add to make red pork tamales, adelante. 🙂
I love when the tamal masa is made with the salsa from the filling. Beautiful color and flavor.
Yay! I’m glad you liked it. Thanks for your comment.
wow so many great tips to make tamales this season. I need to start planning the tamales assembly line. Gotta have many hands to make it happen.
Thanks for your comment.
A unique and a flavorful recipe. Thanks for so much of detailing. Definitely delicious and worth the effort.
Thanks. Gracias.
We love tamales and I’m attempting it this year for the holidays. I know this is going to be a big hit! So appreciate your detailed instructions.
Happy to hear you liked it. Thanks for your comment.
Just perfect! These are the best pork tamales I’ve ever had and so so easy. Loved the spices too. Keeper, thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it. Such a great recipe!
I’m craving these tamales so much, but I must confess: I want to try them made by you! Can I send you some Venezuelan hallacas in exchange?
These Red Pork Tamales are definitely a tasty treat that can be enjoyed any time. Hope you enjoy this recipe.