In celebration of the 2020 Austin Marathon, Half Marathon, 5K and all the cheer squads a group of Prickly Pear Pals got together to make tamales post-race.

• Total Time: ~ 2 hours
• Yields about 25 tamales

Masa

• ~25-30 corn husks (let them soak in boiling water for 1 hour)
• 4 cups Masa Harina (This is special corn masa flour that’s nixtamalized with lime, so regular corn meal won’t work. We like Bob’s Red Mill Masa Harina or Maseca Masa Harina)
• 3 to 4 cups vegetable broth (+ or – as needed until dough feels like play dough)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric

Jackfruit Filling

• 2 cans of jackfruit (Make sure it’s not in brine, we like Native Forest brand which is sold at Central Market and Whole Foods)
• 3-4 tablespoons of coconut aminos
• 1/2 cup chopped onion into small pieces
• 1/2 cup + 1/4 cup tomato sauce (no salt)
• 2 to 3 teaspoons maple syrup
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• New Mexico chiles (to taste if you like a kick of spice)
• Salt to taste (we used a sprinkle of pink Himalayan salt because coconut aminos are salty)

Refried Black Bean Filling

• 16oz black beans (we cooked in instant pot) or canned beans work as well.
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth
• 1/4 chopped onions
• cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, and salt to taste
• 1 tbsp tomato sauce or 1 diced tomato

Other Toppings

• Vegan Sour Cream (made with cashews)
• Vegan Queso (made with cashews)
• Red and Green salsa

Instructions

1. Let the cornhusks soak in boiling water for 1 hour or until soft. Drain well and pat dry with towel.
2. In a large pot sauté onions until golden brown.
3. For the jackfruit, if this is your first time cooking it, first rinse and drain it. the pieces come in triangle chunks. with your fingers open up the chunk and you’ll see the core of the jackfruit which is harder in texture and rounder. Looks kind of like a seed. You can discard it. Then there rest of the chunk you can use your fingers to shred and pull apart (will look like shredded chicken). Rinse jackfruit again in colander and add to a bowl.
4. To the jackfruit bowl, add tomato sauce, coconut aminos and all the spices. Stir, then add this all to the pot with the onions. Cover and cook on low-medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust flavors by adding more spices or peppers for heat. Maybe even some lime.
5. For the black bean filling, put all ingredients in a pot and simmer in low-med heat covered. Then mash all together with a fork.
6. For the masa: mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl first. Then add vegetable broth 1 cup at a time and olive oil. Add more or less vegetable broth as you see fit. Mix well. Dough should feel like play dough and spreadable.
7. To make each tamale, spread about 3-4 tablespoons of masa on the center of the corn husk all the way to the bottom (the wider part of the corn husk). Then place about 1 to 1.5 tablespoons of the filling into the center. The amount of fillings for each tamale depends on the size of the corn husk, just be care not to overfill.
8. Fold and overlap the husk and the thinner part of the husk goes over to seal it shut.
9. Boil water in a steamer basket. Then place tamales into the steamer basket, reduce to low heat and steam them for about an hour to 1.5 hours.
10. Remove tamales and let them cool until hardened.

Recipe adapted from Sweet Simple Vegan.