Green Chile Tamale Pie

Submitted by breezermom

"This recipe uses masa harina, which you can find in most grocery stores now. From Mark Bittman."

 

• Ready In: 1hr 10mins
• Ingredients: 17
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 1 cup masa harina
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 ounces ground sirloin
• 1 1⁄2 cups onions, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 poblano chile, seeded and chopped
• 1⁄2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 8 ounces tomatillos, chopped (about 8 small)
• 1 cup frozen baby lima bean
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1⁄4 cup queso fresco, crumbled
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
• 4 lime wedges

directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Combine the masa harina, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and ground red pepper, stirring well with a whisk. Add 1 cup boiling water to masa mixture, and stir until a soft dough forms. Cover until ready to use.
3. Heat a 9-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add beef to pan; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble.
4. Add onion, garlic, poblano chile, remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt, and black pepper to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring frequently.
5. Add tomatillos and lima beans to pan, and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
6. Add butter and baking powder to masa mixture, stirring until smooth. Dollop batter over filling, and spread into an even layer.
7. Cover pan with foil; bake at 400° for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes or until crust is lightly browned around edges. Remove from oven; let stand 3 minutes.
8. Sprinkle with crumbled queso fresco and cilantro; serve with lime wedges.

Reviews

[David B.]

I'm a bit livid right now so take this review with a grain of salt... First of all, I had to more than double the amount of chicken broth and then add about a cup and a half of water (because I was out of chicken broth) to get the consistency of "cake batter" with the tamale batter. Even at that, I think it was still thicker than cake batter. Now the tamales are cooking and they are coming apart at the seams and flowing all over the bottom of the steamer. All kinds of wasted time and food (money!). Feeling angry.

 

[momaphet]

This was pretty good, I wanted a bit more flavor in the meat mixture but didn't want it to taste like a taco, so I added some cumin and a ljust ittle chili powder. I also used a full pound of meat and it was still a thin pie. I left out the lima beans as neither of us like them. The topping was odd - it got sort of crispy on top but still seemed a little doughy to me - maybe that's the way it should be ? . I expected the topping to be more cornbread like. I really likeed the Queso with it. Made for ZWT 8 by one of the Wild Bunch