Ingredients (15 to 20 tamales)

• sufficientbanana leaves

• 5 or 6 cups of dough (corn)

• 2 ½ stick margarine or ½ pound of butter

• 1 oz condiment for tamales.

• 1 chicken

• salt to taste

• 1 large onion

• herbs

• olives

• Capers

• sugar (sugar for tamales)

• prunes (for sugar tamales)

Procedure:

•Dough:

Place the chicken on a pot with the onion cut into small pieces and finely chopped herbs.Add salt to taste and when the soup is made separate the liquid from the meat.Bone the chicken. Cut into thin strips and set aside.

In the pot, which contains only the liquid (soup), put the dough and butter. Stir constantly and cook. (Check if salt is ok).

The right “point” of the doughcan be determined by taking a teaspoon of it and dropping it on a piece of the banana leaf, if it´s solid and slideseasily its Ok. If it is solid but it doesn’t slide, add a little butter and cook for another five minutes.

• Salsa

In a bit of chicken soup or water, blend an ounce of tamale seasoning and add a little butter or oil and some salt to boil. Set aside.

• The wrapping

If you do not have enough banana leaves, use waxed paper or foil, 25 centimeters by 25 centimeters.

Procedure:

On a banana leaf (without vein)placeone and a half tablespoon of dough and add on top of a piece of chicken, one or two capers, an olive and in the case of sugar tamales add a plum or two.

Drizzle with enough sauce and top with another tablespoon or two of dough. Fold the leaves carefully. Add a second banana sheet or the wrapping paper of your choice.

On a large pot do the following: place the banana leaf leftover on the bottom, if you are using papermake some balls and place them at the bottom. This will prevent the bottom tamales from touching the pot and burning.After this carefully add the tamales, cover with water and bring to a boil.

The tamales are ready when the banana leaves are cooked (remember that the leaves were the only raw ingredient added).

• For sugar tamales

The procedure is the same. When dough is ready, add enough sugar and taste. You can decorate them with potatoes. If so, remove and peel them, chop and cook them and add to the chicken.

Photogallery

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