Casa M Ultimate Pork Tamales

These pork tamales are served—and, of course—spiced with mucho amor and attention to quality by Mike and Manny Hernandez, married in life and business.

Together, they are the “M” in Casa M, a fast-growing artisanal brand devoted to adding the heat you need (whether you know it or not: try their spices and you’ll see!) for all your favorite dishes and recipes.

It all started after another of their legendary dinner parties, starring a scrumptious Texas-style brisket made by Mike, who was torn between going to cooking school and pursing a Ph.D. in chemical physics. Dr. Mike chose the latter, but food never let go of him. So, he brought his love of science into the cocina, alongside Manny, to pursue a combo path he calls Chemistry in the Kitchen.®

Their friends and families soon took note of the deliciousness served on the regular in their house. As Mike tells the story: “Throughout the years, it became customary, as folks were leaving after a meal, that we were asked ’What did you use on this?’ or ’What was that flavor?’ Almost inevitably that turned into ’Will you share the recipe?’ or ‘Can I buy some somewhere?‘ And it got to the point where Manny joked ’We should think about going legit instead of selling dime bags” of his signature spice mixes from their house in Dallas.

Manny’s quip got the the couple thinking. The worked up legit labels and packaging. Soon, a thriving business was born from their spicy side hustle.

Everyone, say hola to Casa M Spice Co.

Meet the Casa M Spice That Started a Chain Reaction

The first blend emerging from Mike’s spice tinkering is their best-selling Chain Reaction mix. It’s a secret blend of natural ingredients including paprika, salt, pepper, garlic, onion, spices, and ground chiles. Of course, it didn’t stop there. Casa M kept developing bold seasonings with ever-witty names like: Cattle Drive (for beef), Whole Hog (for pork), Free Range (for chicken), Hooked (for fish) and Good Shepherd (you guessed it: for lamb).

Manny then puts these spice mixes to work in the weekly recipe he cooks, shoots and posts on Casa M’s blog, often tapping into his Mexican heritage with his mother and abuela’s traditional family recipes. “It was very important to both of us that the brand represent the hospitality of being at Casa M as well as delivering on the signature flavors that everyone already knew and loved,” Manny says.

With Mike and Manny’s commitment to authentic flavors and love of feeding friends and family, Casa M Spice Co. is Familia Kitchen’s partner perfecto for our weeklong Tamale Week showcase. We are honored to shine a light on their Casa M in our celebration of masa-filled-and-wrapped recipes from around the Latino world.

Gracias Manny and Mike! we love your tamales—and the inspiring food story behind your delicious recipe!

When Mike and Manny Got Stranded in Cozumel: A Christmas Tamales Story

Mike and Manny are all about the two Ss: spices and scuba diving. Which is why you’ll often find them underwater off the coast of Cozumel, where they have a home.

But during a recent trip, M&M were grounded when the island was hit by a swell of hurricanes. Since Mike and Manny couldn’t dive, they did the next best thing: they cooked.

The couple soon realized Christmas was just weeks away, and there was a glaring omission in Casa M’s cooking blog. Where were the tamales?

“There is a well established Mexican tradition of making tamales at Christmas,” says Mike. “Manny and I have enjoyed it together for many years and somehow it never dawned on us to make our own and document a recipe for it. That has now changed!’”

To get hands-on learning, they sought out two of the Cozumel’s top tamale makers. In exchange for watching the women prepare their famous tamales, Mike and Manny offered to make their traditional pork filling—with Casa M spices, of course—to stuff the masa.

“Understandably, the maestras were a little dubious since it strayed from their traditional preparation, but we assured them it would be be the best pork they’d had.”

Mike, Manny and Casa M Spices delivered. The pork impressed the veteran tamaleras.

“By the time we were wrapping them, everyone was licking their fingers and stealing little pieces of pork stuffing intended to go into the tamales. Suffice it to say that the resulting tamales were well received. By all. In fact, our two teachers said these were the best pork tamales they’d ever had (even if they were non-traditional).”

Here is the recipe for the tamales they made that Christmas in Cozumel. An important ingredient note: Mike and Manny advise dropping into your local Mexican market to find two make-or-break ingredients.

First, try to buy homemade masa. If they don’t sell it, Manny recommends making your own with a premade masa harina like Maseca Tamal. Make sure it says tamal, as it has a lighter consistency than tortilla corn flour.

Second, look for real pork lard. “It’s important to the flavor, texture, and even the feel of the masa. We get it at the butcher counter at our local Hispanic market, but most butchers should be able to sell you rendered pork fat or, if not, they can sell you leaf lard that you can render.”

And here’s a third tamales tip: Stock up on fresh spices from Casa M. This recipe calls for Casa M Spice Co® Pecking Order®, which comes in two levels of heat: original and 2x hot.

Want to get your spice on—and check gifts off your list? Casa M is offering a holiday special: 20% off spice purchases. Use code: Best20.

CASA M ULTIMATE PORK TAMALES

Recipe by Manny and Mike Hernandez

5.0 from 1 vote

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings

48

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

45

minutes

Ingredients

• 48 dried corn husks, soaked in warm water

• 4 lbs pork shoulder, cut into 1- to 2-inch strips

• 1 tsp salt

• 1/4 cup Casa M Spice Co® Pecking Order® or Uncontrolled Pecking Order®

• For the Salsa

• 4 cups salsa verde (here is Casa M’s recipe) or your favorite premade brand

• 1 tsp Better Than Bouillon chicken base

• For the Masa

• 5 lbs masa (buy prepared from a Latino market or make your own with masa harina for tamales)

• 1 lb pork lard (from your local Mexican butcher or Latino market)

• 1/2 to 1 cup juice from the cooked pork

• salt, to taste

Directions

• Cook the Pork
• Put the pork into a slow cooker set to high. Season with salt and Casa M Spice Co® Pecking Order® and mix well. Cover the slow cooker and put a towel over it to help prevent steam from escaping. Cook for 4-6 hours until it is falling apart. Turn off the heat and remove the pork to a mixing bowl. Pull the pork. Drain excess liquid (up to 1 cup of liquid) and reserve for the masa. This can be prepared ahead and refrigerated.
• Make the Salsa
• Make your own salsa verde—here is Casa M’s recipe. Or buy your favorite green salsa at the store. Steam the tomatillos in a large pot. Set aside. Add the salsa to the remaining liquid in the pot you used to steam the tomatillos. Add the chicken base, stir and let it simmer for a few minutes to meld the flavors. This can be prepared ahead and refrigerated or prepared as the tamales are steaming, served warm/hot, and then refrigerated.
• Prep the Masa
• Use store-bought fresh masa or follow the simple directions on the back of the tamales masa package to make a batch. Put the masa into the bowl of a mixer and add the pork lard and the juice from the cooked pork (up to 1 cup of liquid). Mix well. The “dough” should be smooth with no lumps. It should be a little “wet” but not too wet as to “stick” to your hands. If it needs more liquid use more of the juice from the pork or some warm tap water. When it is very smooth and supple, taste it and adjust salt to taste. It will brighten significantly as you add salt to taste.
• Wrap the Tamales
• Pull a corn husk out of the soaking bowl and lay it flat on a work surface. Using a spoon, scoop out a small amount of the masa and place it onto the wrapper. Spread it out evenly in a thin layer across the narrower end of the husk. Place some pulled pork stuffing into the middle (see photos). Pick up the husk and gently and carefully wrap the tamale, folding the wide end over once at the bottom, then place it into the tamale steamer (filled 1/2 way up to the platform on which the tamales will steam).
• Repeat this process for all your remaining masa and pork. We got 48 out of the 5 lbs of masa and 4 lbs of pork.
• Steam the Tamales
• Once the tamale steamer is packed, turn on the heat to get the water to a rolling boil. Cover the steamer and turn the heat down to medium (or less depending on your stove) to maintain a boil, but not an aggressive one where you’re losing too much steam. Steam the tamales for 30 minutes after the lid is on the steamer, then remove one and carefully open to check to see if the masa has set. It should be set through where you can cut through it without it running or breaking. For us, we needed another 15 minutes to set it well for a total of 45 minutes of steaming, but don’t stress if it takes a full hour. It will depend on how big your steamer is and how many tamales are getting steamed at once.
• Enjoy!
• When the tamales are fully set, remove them from the steamer onto a baking sheet and let them cool a little before turning them out and serving them. For those not eaten in that sitting, put cooled tamales in a zip-top bag and refrigerate.

Notes

• Soak the corn husk wrappers in warm water for at least 30 minutes before you wrap and drain them well.
• Freshly made tamales last for a week in the refrigerator and also freeze quite well.