Picte de Elote Chiapaneco

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Tamalera or deep steamer pot with rack
• •Blender, food processor, or molino for grinding fresh corn
• •Large mixing bowl
• •Wooden spoon or hand mixer
• •Clean kitchen towel for covering the tamales

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the husks

   Choose the widest fresh corn husks from the ears and rinse them well. If they are stiff, soak them in warm water for 15 minutes until flexible. Tear a few narrow strips for tying. Fresh husks give the picte a green corn perfume that dried husks cannot give. If the husks split, overlap two. No drama.

2. 2

   Cut the corn

   Stand each ear of corn upright in a wide bowl and cut the kernels close to the cob. Scrape the cob with the back of the knife to catch the milky liquid. That liquid is flavor and starch. Throwing it away is the kind of waste that makes market women stare at you.

3. 3

   Grind the elote

   Grind the kernels in a molino if you have one, or pulse them in a blender or food processor until thick and coarse, not completely smooth. You want a batter that looks like loose corn masa with small bits of kernel still visible. If you blend it into soup, the tamal will weep instead of setting.

4. 4

   Beat the manteca

   In a large bowl, beat the manteca de cerdo with the sugar for 3 to 4 minutes, until lighter and creamy. Add the salt and baking powder. The fat traps air and gives the picte tenderness. Do not melt the manteca. Melted fat makes a heavy tamal.

5. 5

   Make the batter

   Stir the ground elote into the beaten manteca, then mix in the crema espesa. The batter should mound softly on a spoon and slowly fall back into the bowl. If your corn is very juicy and the batter looks like pourable atole, add the masa harina one tablespoon at a time. This is a correction, not the foundation. Picte is fresh corn first.

6. 6

   Fill the husks

   Lay one corn husk smooth side up. Spoon 3 to 4 tablespoons of batter into the center. Fold the sides over the filling, then fold the narrow end up and tie it with a strip of husk if needed. Do not overfill. The batter swells as it cooks, and a burst picte is what happens when the cook gets impatient.

7. 7

   Steam the tamales

   Set a coin or small heatproof stone in the bottom of a tamalera, then add water below the steamer rack. Line the rack with extra husks and stand the tamales upright, folded side down. Cover with more husks and a clean kitchen towel, then cover the pot. Cook over steady medium heat for 60 to 70 minutes, adding hot water if the coin stops rattling. That sound tells you the pot has not gone dry.

   Keep the water below the rack. Tamales cook from trapped moisture around them, not from sitting in water. If they soak, they turn heavy.
8. 8

   Rest and serve

   Turn off the heat and let the tamales rest in the closed pot for 10 minutes. Open one. The picte should pull from the husk but still feel tender, moist, and custard-soft. Serve warm or at room temperature with cafe de olla, pozol de cacao, or a small cup of hot milk. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.

Chef Tips

• •Make this when the elote is good. If the kernels are dry, old, or starchy, do not force the recipe. Preguntale a las senoras del mercado which corn is tender enough for tamal de elote.
• •The corn husks should come from the same ears when possible. Fresh husks hold moisture and give the right aroma. Dried husks work in an emergency, but they are a compromise.
• •Manteca de cerdo gives the cleanest texture. Butter makes it taste like a bakery sweet. Oil gives no structure. No me vengas con atajos.
• •Some Chiapas families add a pinch of canela molida. Others do not. I leave it out here so the corn speaks first. Cada estado, su propia cocina, and every family still argues inside that state.

Advance Preparation

• •The corn can be cut from the cob up to 4 hours ahead and refrigerated, covered. Grind it close to cooking time so the fresh flavor stays clean.
• •Wrapped raw picte can rest in the refrigerator for up to 6 hours before steaming. Bring the pot to a steady cook and add 5 to 10 minutes if the tamales are cold.
• •Cooked picte keeps refrigerated for 3 days. Reheat in a steamer for 10 to 12 minutes, or eat at room temperature the way many Chiapas families do with coffee.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 80g)