Posted on 02/15/2021 8:51:22 AM PST by Rebelbase
Though they might not be the king of street food today, a hundred years ago Tamales dominated street corners, with tamale vendors becoming so popular that turf wars broke out. Though it was briefly impossible to avoid tamaleros, they vanished almost as quickly as they came. The history of the “Tamale Wars” is history that deserves to be remembered.
This is original content based on research by The History Guy. Images in the Public Domain are carefully selected and provide illustration. As very few images of the actual event are available in the Public Domain, images of similar objects and events are used for illustration.
Guess I’m just young at heart.
LOL!
Nothing says “I don’t want to be taken seriously” like a bow tie (with exceptions for wearing one with a tuxedo).
I pity the fool...
Right. And what’s the weather forecast?
Chili today. Hot tamale.
My hometown, San Antonio, is of course famous for our tamales. But back in the 1800s San Antonio was Notorious for its chili parlors. Chili queens were everywhere.
I have only ever worn a bowtie with a tuxedo (concert black), countless times.
Only on Free Republic can a post about tamales turn into a thread about bowties. 8~)
It is chili to Willie, but hot tamale.
The best tasting tamales are the ones that are made with real lard.
A sack of tamales and a good chili sauce make for a yummy and easy weeknight dinner.
A fond, way back when memory; in the run-up to Christmas my wife and her sisters would spend an evening preparing “Hallacas” – Venezuelan style tamales. Bonding at it’s finest. A night’s work of a one-hundred or more hallacas wasn’t unusual.
Originally prepared by the “help” with leftovers from the Dona’s kitchen, hallacas are basically holiday tamales made from a mixture of beef, pork, chicken, bell peppers, chopped Italian-style Giardiniera pickle mixture, red or yellow onions, tomato, sliced eggs, plenty of sliced olives - green & purple and seasoned to suit. And yes, include a handful or so of RAISINS! Wrap prepared hallecas in plantain leaf then seal in aluminum foil. Boil in a deep crab-pot like pot for 45-60 minutes. Cool and refrigerate.
Big difference in hallacas and other tamales is the former are wrapped in banana leaves while corn husks are used preparing Mexican-style tamales.
Served with “salsa de criola” – a relish type condiment made from sliced red onions, cilantro, vinegar and chopped tomatoes - hallacas are a quick and fulfilling meal especially when company stops by. Now easily frozen, we’ve had hallacas well into the summer.
Bonus Round!; a complimentary dish served nearby to hallacas is “Pan de Jamón”. Basically bread dough rolled out then topped with boiled ham slices spread with a relish of chopped green olives and raisins. Roll-up like a jelly roll and bake. I’m a poor bread baker, if not a lazy one, so bagged pizza dough from the deli works well.
Happy Motoring and Buen Provecho
The Real question is with Tamales “Corn Husk or Banana Leaves?” There are many different kinds of them with all sorts of different stuffing’s—Did you know that some were stuffed with Flowers? Fish? Even Monkey meat (Yucatan State). Each of the 32 states of Mexico has its own Tamale? Some as big as a loaf of bread! When California was part of Mexico it had a double beef Tamale that was a meal in itself (Corn Husk wrappings).
“...it was common to see and hear tamale vendors on the corners.”
Parking lots; after church or at the local Latin store, it’s commonplace to find tamale vendors operating from the back of their vehicle. It’s a custom if not “genetic”.
I was raised in a German neighborhood, lived 2 doors from a small brewery and a few blocks from Anheuser-Busch brewery. You would have thought hot dogs or brats would have been sold out of the push carts but no, tamales were the favorite.
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