

Their high water content tends to attract ice crystal formation. They keep their flavor for quite a while and don’t turn to mush when you defrost them.įillings made from fruits and vegetables don’t usually fare as well. Some freeze better than others.įillings made from red meat, chicken, shrimp, and fish freeze the best. Not all tamale fillings are created equal. If you need to freeze uncooked tamales, follow the tips that we lay out in our below guide to freezing uncooked tamales to help you minimize the mess. Uncooked frozen tamales also tend to lose flavor faster than cooked ones. That’s why ancient Mexican tamale wisdom suggests you cook them before freezing them. It may look less like a tamale and more like a pile. When you thaw an uncooked tamale, you run the risk of the filling leaking out all over the place and making a mess.

Uncooked tamales fall apart quicker in the cold than cooked ones. The problem with freezing uncooked tamales is that the raw corn dough doesn’t stick together well and tends to crumble with time. Follow our below guide to freeze cooked tamales to make sure you wrap them right for the long hibernation. It’s probably easiest to steam a whole batch of tamales at once, separate the ones you need immediately and freeze the rest. It’s also faster and less hassle to thaw cooked tamales, so you can get them into your mouth quicker without extra steps. Freezing cooked tamales suspends the filling at its most flavorful, making sure that less zest is lost in the thaw. Most trained tamale technicians prefer to freeze their tamales cooked rather than raw. We recommend labeling frozen tamales with the date, so you can keep track of the long-term countdown clock.
How do you make cheese tamales not leak crack#
You’ll still be able to munch on them, but the texture and taste will have suffered a steep decline, and you won’t enjoy them as much.Īfter around six frozen months, whether cooked or uncooked, the corn dough shell will become irretrievably dry and will likely crack open and fall apart. We don’t recommend keeping them on ice for much more because the longer they stay at arctic temperatures, the more quality they’ll lose. With the right packaging and prep, you can keep both cooked and uncooked tamales in the freezer for up to six months. The shell is wrapped in a corn husk or banana leaf and steamed until everything inside is nice and soft. Shaped like a little energy bar, tamales come with a corn dough shell stuffed with a filling that’s usually made from pork, cheese, vegetables, or sometimes fruit. Final Thoughts Is Freezing Tamales a Good Idea?
