Nix the GMO - Non GMO Homemade Tamale Corn Masa

Ok, I can feel a rather long post coming on because this topic is one I can totally soapbox out on...

I'll save you.

The nitty gritty of this story is that I just made my very own homemade masa using non-GMO certified organic corn I bought from Amazon.

Hilariously, Tsunami tried to add this dried corn to his last batch of chili. He did try to rehydrate it for a few hours simmering, like a good sport. I also tried to tell him that I didn't think that was all there was to it... but not being sure myself, I let him truck along. It didn't work, of course. It never rehydrated properly and he was surely baffled. We ate it anyway. lol!

However, I decided that it was indeed time to figure it out properly because I wasn't going to keep store bought corn out of the house for very long, if I didn't.

My primary rationale for buying this in the first place was to make corn tortillas for chips for nachos. Yea, that's me, dudes. That's how I operate. It might take me days to make one dang thing I love to eat, but no one complains when I do. It's the kitchen curiosity in me, I guess. And also, I don't want to die eating the things I love to eat just because I can't figure out a healthier alternative.

My health, in my own hands, I endeavor.

Anywho, back to corn.

Nixtamalization. 
The process for making dried corn edible. There is probably a lot more to that, but you can Google that if you like. For this post, it's enough to say that the corn is a tough nut. It needs a process to rehydrate it enough to allow for the skins to be removed and in doing so, make it edible through the cooking process.

This is done by cooking the corn in an alkaline solution. And this is easily accomplished by adding pickling lime to your simmer and letting the whole thing sit overnight. Easy, right? Yup. So easy.

2 cups dried corn
2 tbsp pickling lime
water to cover well

1. Wash and pick through your dried corn just in case there are small stones or oddballs in the mix.
2. Simmer corn, lime and water on low for about 30-45 minutes, covered.
3. Turn off the heat and let this sit, covered, overnight.
4. Wash the corn the next day and store, covered, in the fridge with fresh water until ready to use. I didn't get to mine for 2 days and all was well. I changed the soaking water daily.
5. Wash corn in fresh water, gently rubbing kernels to remove skins. Try to remove what you can and don't worry if you don't get it all off. A lot will have slipped off themselves during the soaking and cleaning.

Corn Masa for Tamales

~4 c chicken stock

1/2 block of manteca (pork lard)

~ 4 cups fresh finished nixtamalized corn

salt, to taste

My 2 cups dried corn turned into about 4-5 cups of nix corn. Basically two batches in my food processor. The chicken stock is a starting point of what you may need. I had a half gallon of stock handy and used about half during the grinding process of the corn. It does depend on your environment as well because your corn may not need as much liquid, etc.

If you were using masa harina, or ground masa flour, then you would alternate adding a little flour to your whipped manteca with a little chicken stock to hydrate your dough/batter. For tamales, you want more of a batter than a dough, which is why the manteca and chicken stock are key. They also add a real depth of flavor to your tamales, of course.

I took half my corn or what would fit in the bowl of my food processor and pulsed the corn using the chicken stock to create a loose, but not wet, corn puree of sorts. Just enough stock or liquid (you can absolutely use water) to allow it to break down into a smooth corn batter. Hard to explain this part but you will use this to add to your whipped manteca.

1. In the bowl of your stand mixer, if you have one, whip up the manteca until silky and smooth. 
2. Ladle in the corn mixture a little at a time and incorporate before adding more corn.
3. Add a little more chicken stock if it looks like your batter is too stiff. It should not fall off the spoon but still be spreadable like a good hummus. 

And that, is about all there is to that. 

There is magic in this whole nixing affair... and it is what produces THE quintessential essence of Mexican corn tortillas, cooking, in fact. It transforms the corn and produces that distinct nutty flavor found in all authentic tortillas.

To make tortillas, you don't need the pork fat. It's just the corn and water, instead of chicken stock. Press balls of this simple corn dough between two plastic baggies and fry that sucker up on a hot tomal or cast iron skillet. You may never eat another or look at another, corn tortilla the same way ever again.

A word about manteca...you could use shortening but why, dude? In Texas, at every grocery store, you can buy fresh, housemade rendered pork fat. Seriously easy to come by. I don't have that luxury in Hawai'i although the Paniolos definitely provide access to any and all real Mexican kitchen staples. I can get manteca at every grocery store. And when we get our wild boar, we'll probably be able to get more manteca than we can shake a stick at. 

Moral of this long-winded pseudo-story is to encourage you, even if you are little sketched out by the idea of pure pork fat... just allow me to gently encourage you to get over it and try it. You will not ever think of it the same way again. Your granny probably kept cans of bacon fat on the stove, right? This is no different. Why waste what most people now understand to be quite healthy for you. In moderation, big shocker.  Animal fats, our bodies know how to process. Just sayin'...

If you can't hack the idea, use shortening but just know that you will improve the flavor and overall kitchen experience immensely if you go the distance and use PORK FAT! YEA!