Christmas tamales · The tamalada

Chicken in salsa verde filling for tamales

1 hour · makes enough for about 2 dozen tamales

A photo like it · Alejandra Mendoza Santillan, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Bright and tart: poached chicken thighs folded into a salsa of roasted tomatillos and serranos. It's the one people go back for.

You need

• 1 1/2 lb (680 g) boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 3/4 white onion (half for the pot, a quarter for the salsa)
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 lb (450 g) tomatillos, husked and rinsed
• 2 serrano chiles (or 1 jalapeño for milder)
• 1/2 cup cilantro leaves and tender stems (optional)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

How to make it

1. Put the chicken, the half onion, 1 garlic clove and the salt in a pot, cover with water and bring to a simmer. Cook gently for 20 to 25 minutes, until the thighs are cooked through. Lift out the chicken and save 1 cup of the broth.
2. Heat the broiler. Spread the tomatillos, serranos, the quarter onion and 2 garlic cloves on a foil-lined sheet pan and broil 5 to 7 minutes, until blistered and blackened in spots, then turn and broil 4 minutes more. The tomatillos should be soft and leaking juice.
3. Blend everything from the pan with the cilantro, if you're using it, and 1/2 cup of the saved broth until fairly smooth.
4. Shred the chicken.
5. Heat the oil in a wide pan over medium-high, add the salsa and cook 5 minutes, stirring, until it thickens a little. Stir in the chicken and cook 5 more minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed.
6. Taste and salt it well. Cool before filling.

Good to know

• Use a rotisserie chicken to skip the poaching: about 4 cups shredded, and use store broth in the salsa.
• The salsa should be thick, not soupy: runny filling makes soggy tamales.

Then fill and steam them: the masa, and how to fill, fold and steam.

The rest of the tamalada

Or order a dozen: 25 makers

Chef Amazing's own recipe. Save it and it opens in Chef Amazing with a timeline, mise en place and what you already have.