Serves: 8

We did a long Sunday afternoon Argentinian lunch this weekend.

A wonderful Beef Empanadas to start.

And then rump cooked over charcoal served with Chimichurri. Smashed potatoes.

And these quite wonderful Sweet Corn Tamales. Much better than cornbread in my opinion and far more… well, Argentinian.

It was in itself an absolutely love lunch with some wonderful flavours.

Though wow, these Tameles are just a great side. Chicken, a braise, a wonderful piece of steak: a great, great accompaniment.

The original receipe asks for the Tamale to be cooked within the corn husks, though this didn’t seem practical to me. My husks were not large enough and so I used baking paper which worked the trick.

Just add some kitchen twine.

These won’t win any awards, though as a side – kid-friendly too – they’re great.

Note: the original recipe asked for Masa Harina and Cornmeal, neither of which I had. I substituted plain flour and polenta and this worked perfectly well.

Ingredients

1kg corn kernels (about 5 – 6 corn ears) with husks
1/2 c butter
1/2 c caster sugar
1/2 c Masa Harina (substitute plain flour)
1/2 c cornmeal (substitute Polenta)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Method

1. Cut off the two ends of each corn ear and with a sharp knife, remove the kernels. Working in batches, place the corn kernels in a food processor and grind them until you have a paste.
2. Drain any liquid from the corn in a colander and place in a large bowl.
3. Beat the butter and egg until nicely fluffy. Add the buter mixture and the rest of the ingredients to the corn and mix until well combined.
4. In a large, reserved corn husk – or on baking paper – place several large tbsp of the corn mixture and make into a log. Fold over the sides of the husk/baking paper and roll into a tube, securing with kitchen twine if necessary.
5. Add the tamales in the rack of a steaming pot, making sure the open side is upwards. Steam for 90 minutes, adding more boiling water as necessary.