Real Homemade Tamales

1 . Stage

Make the filling: Place pork, onion, and garlic in a Dutch oven. Add enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until pork is cooked through, about 2 hours.

2 . Stage

Meanwhile, make chile sauce: Use rubber gloves to remove stems and seeds from chiles. Place chiles in a saucepan with 2 cups water. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

3 . Stage

Transfer chiles and cooking water to a blender and blend until smooth. Strain mixture into a bowl and stir in salt. Set aside.

4 . Stage

Shred cooked pork and mix in 1 cup chile sauce. Reserve remaining sauce for serving.

5 . Stage

Prepare husks and dough: Soak corn husks in a bowl of warm water until softened, about 30 minutes.

6 . Stage

While the husks are soaking, beat lard with 1 tablespoon broth until fluffy. Combine masa harina, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl; stir into the lard mixture, adding more broth as needed to form a spongy dough.

7 . Stage

Remove husks from water and pat dry. Spread dough out over husks to 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick.

8 . Stage

Place 1 tablespoon pork filling over center of each. Fold the sides, top, and bottom of each husk in toward the center to enclose dough.

9 . Stage

Arrange tamales in a steamer basket. Place over simmering water and steam for 1 hour.

10 . Stage

Remove tamales from husks. Drizzle with remaining chile sauce and top with sour cream, or mix sour cream into chile sauce first for a creamy sauce. Photo by pelicangal.