Tierra Caliente Corundas [EXAMPLE]
Michoacán's triangular tamal wrapped in corn-leaf, fluffy and simple — the family cookbook's sample recipe.
from the kitchen of Auntie [Placeholder]
Ingredients
- 1 kg fresh corn masa (freshly ground, if possible)
- 150 g lard, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- Salt, to taste
- Corn leaves (fresh or dried), soaked and dried
- Crema, fresh cheese, and green salsa, to serve
Preparation
- 1
Beat the lard until it lightens and looks fluffy.
- 2
Add the masa a little at a time, alternating with broth or water, until a bit of dough floats in water (the float test).
- 3
Add salt and baking powder; beat one more minute.
- 4
Place two or three spoonfuls of masa on each leaf and fold into a triangle, wrapping tightly.
- 5
Stand the corundas upright in the steamer over a bed of leaves and steam for 1 hour over medium heat.
- 6
Serve hot, drowned in crema and cheese, with green salsa.
[EXAMPLE — REPLACE] This is a sample recipe. When the family shares the real one — with its handfuls-and-pinch measurements and its tricks — this entry will be replaced.
In the Tierra Caliente, corundas carry no filling: they go plain and fluffy, dressed at the table. The secret, they said, is fresh masa and never skimping on beating the lard. A perfect triangle: one that doesn’t open while it steams.