A few months back, I entered the California Wild Rice Board's Wild Rice Rumble recipe contest. The info for all the winners went up just a day or so before I was off to Bulgaria so I didn't get the chance to show off! But, since blogging is mostly "me, me, me," I have to be sure to make you aware of my awesomeness!
First, congratulations to all the winners. I'm honored to be there among all these Chefs; chefs with the capital C!
I had two wins in the contest, my California Wild & Salmon Cream Cheese Roll and the California Wild Rice Tamales highlighted here today!
The backstory on the tamales is that Galya was involved heavily (shocker!)..She not only came up with the actual idea of the tamales, but is also a wrapper of tamales, co-chef, photography director, set designer, food taster, and much, much more. We are partners in many cooking endeavors, and I'm sure that comes as no surprise to many of you. There will be many more big wins in our future!
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| The Winning Wild Rice Photo |
California Wild Rice Tamales
A printable PDF can be downloaded here, btw.
Recipe makes 16 Tamales
Ingredients:
3 cups hominy (canned, drained)
1½ cup dry wild rice
3 tbsp butter, divided
1 large white onion (chopped)
1½ cup slow roasted tomatoes
(or rehydrated sun dried tomatoes)
1 ½ tsp green chilies (canned)
1 tbsp cumin, ground
1½ tbsp ground pepper
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1 cup grated Quesadilla or other good melting cheese
Cornhusks, soaked in warm water overnight
Salt to taste
Instructions:
Cook the wild rice according to the package directions, then drain and allow it to cool.
Use a blender, food processor, or handheld jar chopper to grind the hominy to a rough paste. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter and stir into the hominy and salt to taste.
Heat a pan over medium high heat, and add the remaining tablespoon butter and onions. Cook the onions until lightly caramelized. Chop the tomatoes, draining them, if necessary, and add them to the pan along with the rice, chilies, and spices. Salt to taste. Set aside, allowing the mixture to cool a bit (10-20 minutes), and then stir in the grated cheese.
Tear one of the cornhusks into long strips. The strips will be used for tying the tamales closed, so set them aside for now. Take a new husk, and spread 1/3 cup of the hominy mixture over the wider end of the husk, flattening it well. Place 3 tbsp of the wild rice filling over the hominy and roll it up, making sure the entire filling is surrounded by the hominy mixture.
Bend or twist the ends of the cornhusks and tie them closed with one or more corn husk strips. Repeat until all the tamales are assembled. After you have assembled and tied all of the tamales, place them in a steamer basket in a covered pan and steam for about 30 minutes.
Serve hot with more chopped green chilies and red or green salsa.
Congrats! Your awesomeness is quite astounding. I am now in the mood for a tamale.
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