Colombian Tamales Arrieros or Paisas
It is no surprise that the number one recipe I am asked about from my readers and YouTube subscribers is Colombian tamales. Why? Because they’re simply out of this world delicious! And just like empanadas, buñuelos and natilla, they are very popular during the Christmas season. Colombian tamales are so popular that you will find different types of tamales all over the country such as Tolimenses (from the department of Tolima), Santafereños (from the departments of Cundinamarca and Boyacá), hallacas (from the Llanos Orientales or Eastern Plains), Arrieros (from Colombia’s coffee region and Antioquia), among others. Each version has different ingredients and different ways of making them but the two things they have in common are the use of corn meal and banana leaves to wrap them.
Because recipes also very from family to family or one person to another, I was not able to learn how to really make them until I made them with my husband’s family some years ago in Colombia. Whenever I asked people for their recipe or technique, they would give me this long list of ingredients and instructions which were very hard to understand for some reason. Another thing they were not specific about was whether they were boiled or steamed and how long I needed to cook them for. So, of course, every time I tried to make them myself I would fail miserably. The one thing I did while I made them with my husband’s family was pay attention to everything my mother-in-law was telling my sisters-in-law and my husband, “clean the leaves really well so they’re not dirty”, “make sure the guiso doesn’t stick to the pan”, “don’t let the dough dry out too much” and “make sure each one has a sprig of parsley”, which is her own personal touch. I kept mental notes of everything we did that day and my sister-in-law, Doris, also gave me a typed recipe of the tamales we had made, which were AMAZING! Time consuming of course, but so worth it!
The recipe I’m sharing with you today is based on the recipe of the tamales my husband grew up eating with a few minor changes of my own. And in case you were wondering, they are steamed so that water doesn’t get into the tamales during the cooking process making them bland and watery. Mystery solved!
¡Buen Provecho!
Colombian Tamales (Arriero Style)
Ingredients
Marinade
- ½ white onion
- 4 green onions, stalks only
- 5 garlic cloves
- 4 tbsp all-purpose seasoning with food coloring* (Triguisar, Sazón Goya or homemade)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 cups (472 ml) water
Guiso (Sofrito)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ white or yellow onion, chopped
- 3 green onions, chopped (stalks only)
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 4-5 Roma tomatoes, chopped
- ½ red bell pepper, chopped (optional)
- 1 chicken bouillon (optional)
- 1 tsp all-purpose seasoning with food coloring (Triguisar, Sazón Goya or homemade)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Water (to thin out the guiso)
Filling
- 1½ lb pork belly, cut into 15 pieces**
- 1½ lb pork ribs, cut into 15 pieces
- 4 medium red potatoes, peeled and sliced
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
- 15 sprigs of parsley
Masa (Dough)
- 8-10 cups (2-2.30 liters) water or chicken stock
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 chicken bouillon (optional)
- 1 tbsp all-purpose seasoning with food coloring (Triguisar, Sazón Goya or homemade)
- Salt to taste (start with 3 tbsp and add more, if needed)
- 1-1¼ lb pre-cooked corn meal
- 1 cup frozen or raw sweet peas
Wrapping
- 3 lbs frozen or fresh banana leaves***
- cooking twine
Instructions
Make the Marinade
- The day before, blend all the ingredients for the marinade until smooth.
- Place the pork belly and pork ribs into separate resealable bags or plastic/glass containers. Add the marinade to each bag, seal them, and refrigerate overnight.
Make the Guiso or Sofrito
- In a large pan, heat the oil over medium heat and cook the white onion for about 3 minutes or until it softens. Add the green onion and garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes and red bell pepper (if using) and cook for another 4-5 minutes. Season with the chicken bouillon, all-purpose seasoning, salt, and pepper. If you notice that it is too thick, you can add about ½ cup (118 ml) of water to loosen it. (You can make this guiso the day before to save time).
Prep the Rest of the Ingredients
- Cut the banana leaves into 20-inch (50 cm) pieces. Clean both sides of the leaves with a damp cloth. To make them more pliable, pass them over the stove top until they soften.
- Peel and slice the carrots, then soak them in water using a small container. (We're going to use about 2-3 slices for each tamal).
- Peel and slice the potatoes, then soak them in water using a small container. (We're going to use about 2-3 slices for each tamal).
- Divice the parsley into 15 sprigs, rinse with cold water, and pat them dry.
- Cut the cooking twine into 15 long strings to wrap the tamales.
Make the Masa (Dough)
- Place the water or chicken stock in a large pot, season with the onion powder, garlic powder, chicken bouillon, all-purpose seasoning, and salt. Bring it to a simmer over medium-high heat and slowly add the pre-cooked cornmeal while stirring with a spatula. Once it thickens, add the peas and stir to mix. Remove from the heat.
Assemble the Tamales
- Place two banana leaves, one on top of the other, with the ridges side up. Add the rest of the ingredients in layers starting with about ¼ cup of dough, one tbsp of guiso, one sprig of parsley, 2-3 slices of carrots, 2-3 slices of potatoes, 1 piece of pork belly, and 1 piece of pork ribs.
- Fold in the sides of the leaves, then fold in the ends, and tie them up with a piece of cooking twine. Continue this process until you assemble all 15 tamales.
Cook the Tamales
- Fill the bottom of a tamalera (large pot) with salted water. Place the insert at the bottom and place any leftover banana leaves on top (this prevents the tamales from getting any water inside).
- Place the tamales on top of the banana leaves, (I can usually fit between 7-8 tamales). Cover with the lid, bring the water to a boil, and steam them for a total of 2 hours. Check the water level every 30 minutes and add more water if needed.
- Take the tamales out of the tamalera and let them rest for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
- *If using Triguisar for the marinade, you only need about 4 tablespoons. If using food coloring that does not contain ground cumin, such as Sazón Goya or Bijol, you can use 2 tablespoons and add 2 tablespoons of ground cumin.
- **I use a total of 3 lbs of pork meat. You can divide the 3 lbs into your favorite cut of pork. You can also use beef and/or chicken.
- ***You can find frozen or fresh banana leaves in the US at most Latin grocery stores. If frozen, you can thaw them out overnight in the refrigerator.
- I highly recommend marinating the meat and making the guiso or sofrito the night before to save time.
- Freeze any uncooked tamales for up to 3 months. You can then steam them from frozen for about 2½ hours. No need to thaw them out.
- Refrigerate cooked tamales for up to 3-5 days. You can reheat them for a few minutes in the microwave before serving.
This recipe was originally published on November 13, 2013, and it has since been updated with more information. If you want to see the first version of this recipe, just send me an email, and I will gladly send it to your inbox!
Hola, soy de Bucaramanga y siempre hemos comido tamales santandereanos en mi familia pero los encargábamos o los comprábamos en la panadería. Ahora vivo en Texas y no tengo idea cómo hacerlos. Sabes la receta?
La he hecho, pero por ahora no la tengo en el blog.
hello! how many dozens does 1 recipe make?
This recipe makes 15 tamales.
Hola Diana! About six years ago, I started doing tamales with my mom for Christmas. It is a way to spend time with her. This year, however, she went to Colombia at the beginning of December and we could not do them before she left. I found your recipe and followed it closely. I have to tell you that they came up so good. Although they require a lot of work, the assembly was easy and they are worth it. I really enjoy you way of explaining and the fact that you are taking the time to compilar these recipes. YOU SHOULD WRITE A BOOK.
Feliz Navidad y Prospero New Year!!
Alba.
Yay!!! I’m so happy to hear that the recipe was so helpful to make your tamales this year. I have to admit they do take quite a bit of time to get things prepared but once you have everything ready, they’re a breeze to assemble. Thanks for making them!
Hi Diana have you ever tried using a pressure cooker / instant pot to cook the tamales? Any reason why not to? Love your site! Thanks, Noelle
Hi there! A pressure cooker wouldn't really work for me because I like to steam the tamales and not submerge them in water. I used to cook them in water and it all seep in and wash away all the seasoning leaving them really bland.
Columbian tamales maybe not as popular as Mexican one, but i trust you can make them become more famous. You said they are out of the world, didn't you :))
Hola! I have a friend that doesn't eat meat but eats seafood. What would you recommend as a filling for the tamales and also a cooking time since seafood cooks quicker. Thanks so much!
Hola! I have a friend that doesn't eat meat but loves seafood. What would you recommend as a seafood filling and how long the cooking time would be since seafood cooks quicker then meat.
¡Hola! You know, I have never made tamales with seafood but I have seen several recipes where they use shrimp, crab meat and even oysters or clams. A few years ago I found a recipe for different styles of Colombian tamales, including one from the Pacific region which is made with "piangua", which is a type of clam. The ingredients are a bit different but the cooking time is the same. Here it is: http://labuenanueva.ca/lasbuenanuevas/como-preparar-siete-clases-de-tamales-colombianos/
Hi! Great recipe and video! I made them once and came out great! Now I have a couple questions, first can they be boiled in water instead of being steamed? Second once they are cooked, how are they reheated the next day, and third if I wanted to freeze some I freeze them once assembled before cooking or them after they have cooled off after being cooked. Thanks again $
Thank you for making it! I'm so glad you liked the recipe. =)You can boil the tamales in water, and in fact, many people do, the reason I don't is because I find that no matter how tight you wrap them, you still get some amount of water inside the tamales, this not only makes them watery, but bland as well. But like I said, if you want, you can boil them instead of steaming them.I usually reheat my tamales in the microwave for a few minutes, that saves me a lot of time. Other people steam them again in a smaller pot for about 15-20 minutes. If you want to freeze them, the best way is to do it before cooking. This masa (dough) tends to get dry and lose its texture quickly, so if you freeze them after they're cooked, you are going to end up with a dry, crumbly dough. What I do is wrap each tamal individually with plastic wrap and them store them in a resealable bag, that way air doesn't get it. Then I just steam them as usual and they taste just as good. No need to thaw them out, by the way.
Muchas gracias por esta receta! voy a prepararlos para mi familia,
Gracias a tí Sandra por tu comentario. ¡Espero que los disfruten! =)
Si la receta de los tamales..es espanol …q alli si entiendo…gracias
En la parte de arriba puedes ver el enlace de la receta en español. Todas las recetas del blog están en ambos idiomas. =)
Hay querida.. x fvor…pongase la receta en nuestro idioma..gracias
¡Por supuesto! Al principio de cada entrada coloco el enlace de la versión en español o inglés para que las personas la puedan leer en los dos idiomas. =)