Don't Add Veggies To Tamales Without This One Prep Step

Every December, I look forward to la tamalada, a tamal-making party thrown by a friend whose abuela showed her the ropes as a child. My friend makes masa from scratch with real lard, and the guests all bring varieties of fillings to contribute to the tamales. The fillings include stewed meats in red and green sauces, mushrooms, and rajas con queso, but the one constant of all the fillings is that they are fully cooked beforehand, no matter the type. When making tamales with a vegetable filling, it's crucial that they aren't raw, and the best way to cook vegetables for tamales is to roast them.

As tamales cook, they are slowly steamed in a large, deep pot covered with a lid. This gentle cooking process ensures that the masa is cooked all the way through but still soft and tender. The steaming process, while heating the fillings and fully cooking the masa, is not enough to cook raw vegetables all the way through. Just like you wouldn't fill a tamal with raw meat, vegetables need to be cooked first, too. The only exception to this rule is cheese, which melts beautifully as the tamales steam or reheat. The beauty of a proper tamal is its softness throughout, the tender filling bleeding into the masa that's easily sliced through with the side of a fork. 

Another important reason behind roasting vegetables before using them as tamal filling is to extract extra moisture from the vegetables. Any excess liquid can cause a messy, sloppy filling that may even leak out of the tamales as they cook. Roasting vegetables not only removes water content, but it also gives vegetables more depth of flavor, along with a bit of delicious caramelization. Roasting the vegetables additionally offers you a chance to season them with various spices that raw vegetables just can't properly absorb. A perfect example of how to properly roast your vegetables before enrobing them in fluffy masa is this recipe for tamales de rajas, where rich, meaty poblano peppers and tangy green tomatillos are roasted to perfection before being cooked down with onions and seasonings.

Tamales are notoriously difficult to perfect at home, especially by yourself, as the massive operation is more suited (and frankly, much more enjoyable) for a group effort. One of my personal favorite fillings to bring to a tamalada is roasted mushrooms with strips of Oaxacan cheese, and I always make sure to roast the mushrooms until they are tender with crispy edges, having given up most of their water content. After they've been thoroughly roasted, I cook them down further with onions, garlic, and a splash of vegetable stock to bring everything together. Set yourself up for success with our tips for making the best tamales before you embark on your next tamal-making endeavor.