Preview

Tradition of the Tamales

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1612 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Tradition of the Tamales
Tradition of the Tamales

Eating tamales when they first come out of the pot is a supernatural experience. The steam rises, and the delightful aroma that make’s my mouth water and my vocal cords say yummy. The corn husk is holding the bundle of flavors. This bundle has been stuffed with corn meal, and it’s arsenal of chicken, savory meat, cheese and whatever was in my momma’s imagination. Like the vegetarian, or the sweet little dessert tamales with cinnamon and raisins, pineapple and coconut. The spices and variety of chilies gives the tamales delicious flavors and coloring. All the while they are slowly cooking in the hot steam. Stabbing the fork in the center of the warm tamale in order to retrieve a piece; is the most delicious and tender part of it. It promotes anticipation from the moment when the tasty cornmeal touches the lips. Placing a piece in the mouth and feeling its soft texture as well as tasting its flavors, creates a wonderful feeling of love and joy. Eating it with some freshly made salsa made the dish more enjoyable. As far back as I can remember my momma had always made delicious tamales. My parents are both hard workers so when money and the time was right we would call it tamale day. The labor started Friday afternoon the season of the shredded meat with chili powder, salt, and cumin to taste. As you season the meat, add a small amount of broth to moisten meat, but it should not be runny. For every 2 cups of masa harina, add 1/2 cup of shortening or lard, 1 teaspoon of salt, and enough chili powder to make the pink dough. Add broth mixture a little at a time to the masa and mix with your hands to get a smooth, spreadable consistency. If you run out of broth, you can use hot water, but you will wish you had plenty of broth. The cleaning of the corn husk will be done in the afternoon by my two brothers and me. We would play and work at it at the same time. In the middle of stupid jokes some foul language, so inappropriate

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    In today 's fast-paced lives, there are people that do not have time to cook and need a good restaurant to eat at with reasonable prices. SaMi 's Place will offer a variety of Mexican-American food that can appeal to all ages and food palates. Our cuisine ranges from grilled pork chops to traditional homemade tamales with fresh salsa, chips, and an array of dips/sauces.…

    • 1090 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Traditions are customs or beliefs handed down through a family and sometimes created without even realizing it. The routines or foods shared when we come together are repeated and become a part of who we are. A detail made clear, a few weeks ago, as my daughters and I shopped for groceries the day before our Super Bowl gathering. As we grabbed chips, dips, sodas, baked beans, chicken, and barbeque sauce, one of my daughters said, "Don't forget the ingredients for 'Mom's ChickenEnchiladas'." I never realized, until then, that it had become a traditional dish served at all our family functions.…

    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This was the 5th annual Dia De Los Muertos Festival at ELAC. This is my first time attending a festival and my experiences that I observed was food, ceramic skulls, face painting, t-shirts with Calaveras, handbags, music band, etc.…

    • 203 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The first step in making tamales is, you let the meat in this case “pork” cook for at least two hours, with a piece of garlic and onion to give it some flavor. While patiently waiting for the meat to cook well, grab some red Chile pods and take the seeds it has inside out. After finishing taking out the seeds, you place the chiles in a saucepan and add about two the three cups of water and put it on heat for half an hour. Then when the time has passed transfer the red Chiles and water to your blender until the Chiles are smooth. After smoothing the Chiles you strain the mixture and make sure you don’t forget to stir into salt, and put aside. Lastly, shred the meat “pork” and mix it in a cup of the red Chile…

    • 143 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Tamales could be pre-made ahead of time and packed, to be warmed as needed. They were steamed, grilled on the comal (grill) over the fire, or put directly on top of the coals to warm, or they were eaten cold. While searching the web I found no record of which culture actually created the tamale but believe that the snowball effect where one tribe or culture started and the others soon followed after and so on and so on.…

    • 1774 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Green Chili Recipe Report

    • 1555 Words
    • 7 Pages

    My mother gave me the recipe, which she acquired from the restaurant in the 1980’s. She first started going to the restaurant with her best friend Debbee when she was in graduate school. My mother has always told me that she loved the recipe because even though graduate school was grueling and tiresome, her and Debbee would make time to go to La Bolos. At La Bolos they would wait in line just to get their table in the back then they would both order the smothered bean burrito with their signature green chili. Although eventually my mother and Debbee graduated, my mother got the recipe for green chili and continued to make it on her…

    • 1555 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Aztec clothing was often made of beautiful fabric, though the extent of the quality of the cloth was generally dependent on the wealth of the wearer. Like the food common to modern day Mexico, Aztec food tended to be both rich and spicy. In fact, many of the ancient Aztec foods were flavored with chili peppers and contained spicy sauces. In addition, the main food of the Aztecs was the tlaxcalli, which was a corn-meal pancake similar to the modern day tortilla. This primary Aztec food was commonly wrapped around meat and vegetables in order to make tacos.Most of the meat added to Aztec foods was gained through hunting, such as geese, ducks, deer, and rabbits.Fruits and vegetables provided a strong base for many Aztec foods. The most important…

    • 163 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    It is important to my family because it might be the only time when we get together as a family. Making tamales might have a different meaning to different Hispanic families that follow the tradition of making tamales for the festivities mentioned before. This tradition is important to Hispanics because it is one of the things that let us stay in-touch with our heritage and show us what culture we are apart of. The same thing applies to my family because I know that my parents miss being in Mexico with their families, and they wish to pass down this tradition to us, so that we know our heritage and so that we can know our culture. I know that it means everything to my parents that we follow their traditions, but we choose to follow them because we enjoy the traditions that they share with…

    • 758 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    How to Make Pupusas

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages

    We will start with the basics. This is no rocket science I will tell you that now. Pupusas is made of a thick homemade corn tortilla. It is filled with a blend of cheese, cooked pork meat, and refried beans. To add flavor, we may add loroco which is a vine flower bud from Central America. They are served with curtido (Cabbage slaw with red chilies and vinegar) and a watery tomato salsa. A lot of people mistake the Pupusa with the Gordita from Mexico. The only differences are that the gordita is filled with more stuff and has an opening. This typical Salvadoran food has been around for more than 2000 years. They were created centuries ago by the Pipil tribes. They lived in the territory now known as El Salvador. Until the late 1940s this food became popular around the country when people moves out of towns to cities. When the Salvadoran Civil War broke down a lot of people were forced to move out of the county, where their destination was the United States. This is what made us come here and migrate with our tradition and culture. This all happened in the 1980s, since that day you can find pupuserias (places where pupusas are sold) anywhere where there is a major population of Salvadoreans. Some…

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Ever since then, I’ve loved every bit of Mexican food and it has even inspired me to learn about Mexican culture. I am currently learning Spanish and hoping to celebrate Dia de los Muertos, also known as the Day of the Dead, this year. Eating Mexican food and examining their culture has led me to a richer, more exciting life, all thanks to one tortilla chip way back in…

    • 437 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    During National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 to October 15) we recognize the contributions made and the important presence of Hispanic and Latino Americans to the United States and celebrate their heritage and culture. Hispanics have had a profound and positive influence on our country through their strong commitment to family, faith, hard work, and service. They have enhanced and shaped our national character with centuries-old traditions that reflect the multiethnic and multicultural customs of their community. Hispanic Heritage Month, whose roots go back to 1968, begins each year on September 15, the anniversary of independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Mexico,…

    • 395 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Shouts and laughter echo throughout the kitchen as my grandparents recount stories of growing up in Mexico as young adults. Everyone’s eyes light up with animation as family members contribute to the conversation while eating homemade tamales and menudo. At each of my family holiday gatherings, the dinner goes beyond the consumption of a home cooked meal. These family gatherings are very important to me and have contributed to who I am today.…

    • 493 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Tacos

    • 1676 Words
    • 7 Pages

    In the early days of Mexico, tortillas where made by boiling corn (maize) with lime to soften the kernels and loosen the hulls. The grains were then ground on a stone saddle. The tortillas were formed by hand and baked on a griddle. Tortillas were laboriously hand made until 1960 when the tortilla making machine was developed. Immediately following this event, Ken Bell opened up the first Taco Bell in 1962.…

    • 1676 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mexican Tradition

    • 939 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Growing up in a Mexican household meant food, all the time. When I think back as far as I can remember, there isn’t a moment I recall that my grandma was not steady stirring up something in the kitchen. Waking up at the crack of dawn to prepare breakfast was a breeze for her, and for a traditional Mexican household it is nothing out of the ordinary. Tortillas, the number one staple food in Mexico, were created daily, and usually the preparation for lunch or dinner continued as soon as breakfast had finished. It is embedded in the Mexican culture for the women to be responsible in keeping a home together; with the preparation of fresh meals, and large meals at that, it allows families to come together each day and form a bond. Food was, and is, used as a means of non-verbal communication; and the dishes prepared are just as unique as the person preparing them. When guests came over to visit, that only meant more food to be cooked, and more delicious snacks to be enjoyed. Abuelas (grandmas) are notorious for cooking the best of the best when a visitor is present, even if that visitor is a five-year-old grandchild. It’s a way of conveying respect to that individual, in addition to ensuring they are not hungry, thirsty, or uncomfortable. For the Mexican wife of the household, every detail is important. The entire home is a symbol of what you represent: from the cleanliness of your home, to the delectable of your food, and even the obedience of your children. This is what I feel was important to the mothers, aunts, and grandmas I grew up around. At the end of the day, the woman was judged based on the complete infrastructure of her home.…

    • 939 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    las posadas

    • 755 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The food during Las Posadas is incredible. There are huge feasts within families and friends. Bowls and plates of Mexican Rice and other traditional foods fill the tables. Guests that come to the house holds recieve snacks. Hot Ponche, Fried Rosette cookies or Bunuelos, Hot Tamales, and many many more snacks are served. All of the food is a fun and festive way to celebrate the birth of Christ.…

    • 755 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays