Pulled Pork & Brisket Tamales! My First Ever Attempt!

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Misplaced Nebraskan

Master of the Pit
Original poster
OTBS Member
Sep 20, 2018
1,072
1,103
Austin, TX
Pulled Pork & Brisket BBQ Tamales


r.jpg



The time had finally come to try something new to me; Tamales! I've had the vision of BBQ Tamales in my head for quite awhile and decide it was time to pull the trigger. The wife and I are big tamale fans, usually just traditional pork. I didn't want to try and recreate a traditional tamale, I wanted to have a unique twist to them. The goal was to test run a small batch for feedback vice diving in to a large batch blind. I was hoping for the BBQ'd meat to stand up still and taste like BBQ, but in a tamale package. I recently cooked a pork butt and a brisket for the ultimate goal of making these. I did a lot of reading on tamales and recipes. One thing that stood out was "Real tamales use LARD!" Who am I to say no to that! I gathered all the ingredients I thought I'd need and I got to work.

Here is the Pulled Pork and Brisket I used (threads linked):

Pulled Pork:


a.jpg



Brisket:


b.jpg



Tamale Dough (supposed to float in cold water, or so I've read):


c.jpg



Vinegar Sauce:


d.jpg



e.jpg



Pulled Pork Sauced:


f.jpg



Brisket Diced and Sauced:


g.jpg



Tamale Prep Station:


h.jpg



Scoop and Spread Some Masa:


i.jpg



Pack in the Meat:


j.jpg



Roll, Fold, and Tie. My first Tamale ever! Proud moment haha:


k.jpg



Top View:


l.jpg



Ready to cook:


m.jpg



Into a Steamer Pot:


n.jpg



Sealed with extra Husks:


o.jpg


Cover and Steam:


p.jpg



Tamale Glamour Shot:


q.jpg




So this was a ton of fun to make! I can see why people recommend a tamale assembly line of multiple people! This small batch wasn't too bad though. It took longer to keep stopping to clean hands for pictures though! I learned a lot doing this and took lots of notes.

The first bite was followed by a big smile! The texture of the exterior was soft but held together. Thickness was not uniform at all and definitely due to my lack of knowledge having never made these before. But most were sealed all the way around, just thin in spots. The dough wasn't bland but it for sure took a back seat to the filling, which I hoped for. I added a good bit of sauce to the meat because I was worried they would dry out. I was also concerned they would taste like saucy pork. I got real lucky and hit a sweet spot in the middle. Plenty of moisture and the pork/brisket flavor was there.

The easiest way I can explain the taste, both the wife and I agreed; It tastes exactly like you'd think a BBQ Pulled Pork Tamale would taste. They do not hit the same spot, from a craving perspective, as a traditional tamale, but they satisfied my goals of what I set out for! A fun twist for an occasional change of pace. And a great way to use some leftover BBQ! I know, I know... There's supposedly no such thing as "leftover" BBQ. But when I cook for 10 and there is only the wife and I, it's good to have ways to mix it up!

The other bonus was there is minimal tweaking needed and I can commence with making a full on batch of these for portioning and freezing. I have an idea to try and sprinkle some rub in either the masa or with the meat for an extra boost of BBQ Flavor. I'll do a small run of those though as these were pretty close to the profile I was looking for.

Here are the basics of what I did:

Dough Recipe (1/5th original - baby batch good for a dozen or so):

112g Masa Harina
140mL Hot Water
75g Lard
47g Warm Chicken Stock
1.5g Baking Powder
Pinch of Salt

Mix the masa and hot water until it comes together and set aside. Whip the lard in the stand mixer and then incorporate the Baking powder and salt. Mix again. Add Hydrated Masa in batches and mix. Scrape sides often. Slowly, in steps, mix in the warm stock. Set in fridge for 1 hour to meld.

Vinegar Sauce (my go to for Pulled Pork as a side sauce - 1/4 scale for this):

1/2 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 Cup Ketchup
1/8 Cup Hot Sauce (I use Tiger Sauce)
1/2 Tbsp Salt
1/2 Tbsp Black Pepper
1/8 Cup White Granulated Sugar

Mix all ingredients in a pot on low heat to dissolve and combine. Store in fridge.

Meat Prep:

I added each meat, individually, to a large skillet and heated up with some of the vinegar sauce til it just looked right. No real measurement here, but it wasn't dripping wet, just saturated a little.

From there it was just a matter of:

Husk -> Masa -> Meat -> Roll -> Fold Husk -> Tie Tamale -> Steam

I wound up steaming these for just over 90 minutes. I checked from the 75 minute mark on, in 15 minute increments, to test for doneness. The husk should pull away from the masa without tearing or separation. Once they looked good, I stacked them up and loosely covered for 20 minutes or so to set/cool... and then took a bunch of photos!

The tequila just seemed fitting. It is a local one to Austin. 100% Agave and aged in Bourbon Casks! A mix of Mex and ATX... Kind of like Tamales and BBQ?! Seemed fitting to me anyway.

OK. I think I've rambled enough. I'm open to any and all feedback if anyone has some tips for me! Go easy on me chilerelleno chilerelleno !

Thanks for checking out another post and cheers y'all!
 
Holy moly Zack, those tamales look delicious, big Like! Looks like a lot of work, nice job. RAY

Thanks Ray! They were a bit of work, but justified in the end. I wish I had gone all in from the get go, but wanted to play it safe in case something was off.
 
giphy.gif

Dang man you are killing it here lately! Those look so good. I am a big fan of the vinegar sauces as well so this is right up my alley. Just happen to have plenty of leftover brisket on hand and some PP in the freezer. Thanks for sharing and for the details! Will add this to my mile long to do list haha.
 
View attachment 447110

Dang man you are killing it here lately! Those look so good. I am a big fan of the vinegar sauces as well so this is right up my alley. Just happen to have plenty of leftover brisket on hand and some PP in the freezer. Thanks for sharing and for the details! Will add this to my mile long to do list haha.

I've had some more time off recently to get back to playing around! They are a little bit of effort but worth it in the end IMHO.

My to do lists are never shorter, always longer! So much good stuff on here to try!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Brokenhandle
HUGE LIKE ON SO MANY LEVELS. First off... That pic! Amateur photo guy myself. Love that money shot. I gotta ask, what camera and glass? Wonder if a macro lens...

The dough recipe?!?! Killer info and by weight, YES! Thanks. You have totally convinced me to try making them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Misplaced Nebraskan
HUGE LIKE ON SO MANY LEVELS. First off... That pic! Amateur photo guy myself. Love that money shot. I gotta ask, what camera and glass? Wonder if a macro lens...

The dough recipe?!?! Killer info and by weight, YES! Thanks. You have totally convinced me to try making them.

Thanks! I'm trying to get into better photos. But I still just use my phone. Pixel 3 XL. I've just been playing with the editing. No clue what I'm actually doing, but tweaking til I like them. Just moving to outside natural light pics made a huge difference! Appreciate the kind words!

Someday I'd like to get a DSLR again and play around more with photography beyond cell phones. Another hobby to spend some money on haha.

There is still some play in the recipes obviously, but I think they are pretty forgiving and open to interpretation. Worth a try though!
 
Got some input from friend to use some renderings from a cook in the Masa for added flavor instead of or to supplement the hot water. Sounds like a no brainier to me! Anyone try that?
 
  • Like
Reactions: tallbm
They look awesome! Never have tried making them but want to, even tho it would be alot of work. Thanks to your tutorial it might just get closer. Very nice job and big like!

Ryan
 
  • Like
Reactions: Misplaced Nebraskan
They look awesome! Never have tried making them but want to, even tho it would be alot of work. Thanks to your tutorial it might just get closer. Very nice job and big like!

Ryan

Thanks Ryan!

They are more daunting than they actually are. Still time consuming, but I'm glad I finally tried them.
 
For a first time they look great. I happened to make around 4 dozen myself Sunday using smoked chuck.
I use the leftover chili water along with chicken stock for my liquid in the masa. This last batch I made the smoke flavor over rides the chili flavor so next time I'll be rehydrating more peppers.
And yes they definitely are a labor of love especially when gifting.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Misplaced Nebraskan
For a first time they look great. I happened to make around 4 dozen myself Sunday using smoked chuck.
I use the leftover chili water along with chicken stock for my liquid in the masa. This last batch I made the smoke flavor over rides the chili flavor so next time I'll be rehydrating more peppers.
And yes they definitely are a labor of love especially when gifting.
Thanks! Sounds like upgrading the water to other stuff is an easy next step. And obvious in hind sight!
I bet they are flavor packed.
 
Now you're hooked, awseome job.
I use smoked meat in all of my tamales both pork and beef. And a great thing to do with leftover masa is to make some desert tamales, I use pineapple, pecans, brown sugar and golden raisins. Mix everything together with the masa and just put a blob down and roll them up. Then make up a rustic caramel sauce by reducing white sugar, then put a few spoonfuls of the caramel sauce over the tamales and a scoop of real vanilla bean ice cream...people freak out over these when I make them.

Oh, These make life SO much easier, the picture doesn't show it these have a 1/4'' boarder on the left and right side so you get the perfect 1/4'' masa each time and boy do they sure speed things up.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Misplaced Nebraskan
Got some input from friend to use some renderings from a cook in the Masa for added flavor instead of or to supplement the hot water. Sounds like a no brainier to me! Anyone try that?
Man great job and first attempt!

I don't make tamales but my mother does and have seen em made all my life.
You were given a key step to improving the masa. My mother boils her pork (traditional tamales are from pig heads so this was the only way to get all the meat) but does them out of pork butts mostly these days.
So with that said, she seasons the meat and the water and boils the meat.
Saves that water for the masa and bam u have super flavored masa!
She then re-seasons the meat to taste kind of like how you do with pulled pork to get more flavor where it couldn't penetrate.

Also another masa tip for AFTER you have steamed them.
Tamales benefit from a good long resting time. I noticed you pulled yours after a 20 min rest. If you wait a couple to a few hours sitting in the steam pot turned off and uncovered they will set a lot better. You should be able to eliminate graininess, liquid or loose masa, etc.

Finally on masa get a corn tortilla press and roll your masa into balls of appropriate size and shape.
Put corn husk on corn tortilla press, put masa ball on corn husk, smash. Repeat.
This should move things along faster and more consistently. Also it will help you adjust your masa texture so that it isnt too wet or sticky.
fqeiqwp60LknP0Zu59Zc5GlgBOXRVRM0gBxHCwYuZbbEbsGt7Q.png archive%2Fdbb46fbcea842fc7e0e99888f6c83c511c6d4c28.jpg

Other things to consider, are that my mother has now moved to using a giant pressure cooker I bought her to do well over 12 dozen at a time hahaha. Not a reason to go buy a good stovetop pressure cooker but if get to that point u know it works and may cut down time in the end with less water need.

If you find your tamales are always a little wet or soggy you can reheat by throwing on the grill like wet corn or you can peel from the husk and warm in a hot skillet or flat top or cast iron skillet. This gives nice crisp great tamales.

One day if get your masa and techniques down you should think about refried beans with onion and peppers all ferried in bacon fat and add some mozzarella (yep mozzarella) and make refried bean tamales and OMG sooo amazing.

I hope some of this info jives and helps ya out man. Great job and keep it up! :D
 
  • Like
Reactions: Misplaced Nebraskan
Now you're hooked, awseome job.
I use smoked meat in all of my tamales both pork and beef. And a great thing to do with leftover masa is to make some desert tamales, I use pineapple, pecans, brown sugar and golden raisins. Mix everything together with the masa and just put a blob down and roll them up. Then make up a rustic caramel sauce by reducing white sugar, then put a few spoonfuls of the caramel sauce over the tamales and a scoop of real vanilla bean ice cream...people freak out over these when I make them.

Oh, These make life SO much easier, the picture doesn't show it these have a 1/4'' boarder on the left and right side so you get the perfect 1/4'' masa each time and boy do they sure speed things up.

Desert Tamales sound amazing! will try! And yes I need a spreader, appreciate it. in the cart it goes!

Awesome pictures!

Thank you! I had some fun with these haha.



This is what i love about this site i learn new things and see new recipes everyday those tamales look great!

Happy Smoking,
phatbac (Aaron)

Thank you! I learned a LOT here over years of lurking!
 
  • Like
Reactions: forktender
Man great job and first attempt!

I don't make tamales but my mother does and have seen em made all my life.
You were given a key step to improving the masa. My mother boils her pork (traditional tamales are from pig heads so this was the only way to get all the meat) but does them out of pork butts mostly these days.
So with that said, she seasons the meat and the water and boils the meat.
Saves that water for the masa and bam u have super flavored masa!
She then re-seasons the meat to taste kind of like how you do with pulled pork to get more flavor where it couldn't penetrate.

Also another masa tip for AFTER you have steamed them.
Tamales benefit from a good long resting time. I noticed you pulled yours after a 20 min rest. If you wait a couple to a few hours sitting in the steam pot turned off and uncovered they will set a lot better. You should be able to eliminate graininess, liquid or loose masa, etc.

Finally on masa get a corn tortilla press and roll your masa into balls of appropriate size and shape.
Put corn husk on corn tortilla press, put masa ball on corn husk, smash. Repeat.
This should move things along faster and more consistently. Also it will help you adjust your masa texture so that it isnt too wet or sticky.
View attachment 447397View attachment 447398

Other things to consider, are that my mother has now moved to using a giant pressure cooker I bought her to do well over 12 dozen at a time hahaha. Not a reason to go buy a good stovetop pressure cooker but if get to that point u know it works and may cut down time in the end with less water need.

If you find your tamales are always a little wet or soggy you can reheat by throwing on the grill like wet corn or you can peel from the husk and warm in a hot skillet or flat top or cast iron skillet. This gives nice crisp great tamales.

One day if get your masa and techniques down you should think about refried beans with onion and peppers all ferried in bacon fat and add some mozzarella (yep mozzarella) and make refried bean tamales and OMG sooo amazing.

I hope some of this info jives and helps ya out man. Great job and keep it up! :D


So much amazing info in here! Thank you! I have added all these tips/thoughts/processes to my notes! Pig's head is on my list too.

Some Cast iron reheat with some sauce and cheese would be great and make tx smoker tx smoker happy too! haha.

Thanks for all the encouragement. I'll be making my big batch hopefully this weekend for storage.
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Latest posts

Hot Threads

Clicky