With tamales usually comes a lot of work, so you wouldn’t think to try and make them yourself for anything other than a special occasion. These awesome little tamale “bites” give you the great taste of homemade tamales without all of the work. Bonus, they make the perfect game time appetizer and can be served either hot or at room temperature. Change them up to suit your mood by adding pulled pork or beef and a different cheese on top. Have some fun with your food!
Using a cookie scoop, add masa to the mini muffin tin.
Using a melon baller, create an indentation in each.
Add chili filling first.
Add chicken, jalapeno slice and cheese.
Chicken Tamale Bites
Author: Monica
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 24
Ingredients
For the Chicken Filling:
- 1 chicken breast (I use rotisserie chicken, but you can also cook it and shred it yourself)
- ¼ cup enchilada sauce (could be green or red, hot or mild)
- 24 slices pickled jalapenos
- Cheddar cheese cut into 24 squares or shredded to top tamale bites
For the Chili Filling:
- 1 can of your favorite chili with beans (I used Dennison's)
- 2 tablespoons of the enchilada sauce
For the Tamale Masa Shells:
- 1½ cups masa harina (corn flour)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup chicken broth
- ½ cup enchilada sauce (same sauce you used for the chicken)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening or lard, melted
- Non-stick cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Chicken Filling:
- Shred the chicken and mix together with the enchilada sauce.
Chili FIlling:
- Add can of chili and the enchilada sauce to your blender. Blend until smooth. Add small amounts of enchilada sauce if the blender stalls and needs more liquid.
Masa Shells:
- Add masa harina, salt and baking powder to a medium bowl. Stir to combine.
- Add the chicken broth and enchilada sauce and stir until you get a crumbly consistency.
- Melt the shortening or lard in the microwave and add to the masa, mixing by hand to thoroughly incorporate into a smooth dough. (If it feels too dry, add additional broth a tablespoon at a time and mix until you have a dough that holds together)
- Spray mini muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Using a cookie dough scoop or tablespoon, pack masa dough into the scoop and drop into each muffin tin cavity rounded side down. Using a melon baller, dipped in water to minimize sticking, with the rounded surface form wells in the masa dough large enough to fill with chili and chicken.
- Drop approximately a teaspoon of chili into the bottom of each well, followed by shredded chicken and a slice of pickled jalapeno.
- Bake for 20 minutes, remove from oven and add cheese slices before returning to oven for an extra 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes. Use a knife to easily loosen them from the pan and remove to a serving plate. Garnish with diced avocado, guacamole or your favorite Mexican condiment. Enjoy!
