Instant Pot Red Chile Pork Tamales
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Have you ever wanted to make homemade tamales, but didn’t know how? Or maybe you thought it would be too hard? Well put those ideas out of your head, we are making Instant Pot Red Chile Pork Tamales in the easiest way possible while still staying true to the original recipes that have been handed down for generations.
For even more delicious pressure cooker recipes, check out the Instant Pot Recipes page.
My grandmother would have loved this Instant Pot tamales recipe, they are nice and spicy! Obviously she did not pass this recipe down, she was born and raised in England.
Tamales are a labor of love and perfect dish to serve on special occasions. My favorite tamales are made with tender pork filling that is mixed with red chile sauce. There are additional filling suggestions at the bottom of this post if you prefer chicken or beef.
What you’ll need
- Packaged dry corn husks
- Masa harina (corn flour)
- Warm water
- Lard
- Baking powder
- Sea salt
- Chicken broth or stock
- Red Chile Pork – or choose your favorite from the list below
Be sure to check out the detailed printable recipe card below
This Instant Pot Red Chile Pork Tamales recipe is a combination of several recipes for Mexican tamales that have all been blended together and tweaked to work using an Instant Pot.
How do you make Instant Pot Red Chile Pork Tamales?
Place husks in a large bowl or pot, cover with hot water and let them soak for until pliable, about 30 minutes.
Stir the masa and warm water together in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment until thoroughly mixed and it form a ball.
Add the lard, baking powder, salt, and chicken stock. Blend on medium speed for 5 minutes to thoroughly incorporate. The mixture should be the consistency of hummus.
If you do not have enough moisture, your tamales will be dry and crumbly. Place a scoop of masa into a bowl of warm water…..
If it floats, you’re good to go. If it sinks, you need to add more liquid. Set your finished dough aside until ready to use.
Remove the corn husks from the water and lightly dry them to remove excess moisture.
Place a quarter cup of masa dough in the middle of the corn husk on a clean work surface.
Spread the dough out in a thin layer about a 4-inch square, about half-inch thick in the center of the husk.
Do as I say, not as I do, LOL Don’t worry, keep going!
Place 2 tablespoons of Instant Pot Red Chile Pork in the center of the masa.
See, that one is much closer to 4 inches. 😉
Fold the husk over, starting with the side closest to you. Roll into a tight log/tube and fold up the long end towards the center. Tie a thin strip of husk around the center to secure.
I could have sworn I took more photos of the rolling process…ooops!
Repeat the process until you have used up all of your husks and masa.
Place 2 cups water in the bottom of the pot, then place a steam rack or steamer basket on the bottom of the instant pot.
Add the wrapped tamales with the open end facing up.
***Make sure the tamales are not sticking up too high over the edge of the Instant Pot liner or your pressure cooker will not be able to build pressure, it will keep the lid from sealing properly***
Secure the lid, make sure the pressure knob is in the “Sealing” position, and set press the Manual button, High Pressure and use the = and – buttons to set the timer for 20 minutes.
When the pot beeps, allow the pressure to natural release for 10 minutes then quick release any remaining pressure. Very carefully remove the lid at an angle to keep the moisture from dropping down onto the tamales.
Allow your tamales to rest for 20 to 30 minutes to set and begin to firm up.
Serve with Mexican crema, sour cream, crumbled Queso Fresco, salsa, or sauce of your choice.
Muy Bueno!! The red chile pork by itself seemed a bit spicy, but cooked inside this yummy masa it is perfect!
Recipe Notes:
- You want to keep your masa at least half-inch away from the sides to make it easier to roll. I got better at it after a few tried, but didn’t take any new photos.
- Yes, this is a time consuming process. If you have little helper to form an assembly line, it will go much faster.
- I prepared my Red Chile Pork one day, and prepared the tamales the next.
- Rip a few husks into half-inch strips and soak with the full-sized husks to use as your ties.
- Corn husks are all different sizes, just adapt your fillings to the smaller husks and you will be fine.
- You read correctly, I did say 2 cups of water. I ran out of water during the first batch, so I added more for the second and it didn’t dry up!
- Store leftover tamales in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave or place in a 350° F. oven until heated through.
Why yes you did read that correctly, I said Lard! Why do you use lard you ask? Well because that is the way they have been made for centuries and I have no intentions of going up against anyone’s abuela for messing with tradition. You can substitute vegetable shortening if you must, but the flavor will not be the same. 🙂
More delicious tamale filling recipes:
- Instant Pot Red Chile Shredded Pork – the recipe I used for these tamales.
- Instant Pot Mexican Style Shredded Beef – not traditional, but still delicious
- Instant Pot Adobo Chicken
- Salsa Verde Instant Pot Chicken Tamales
Recipes to compliment your tamales:
- Instant Pot Spanish Rice – there is also a stove-top version Mexican Rice
- Pico de Gallo
- Restaurant Style Blender Salsa
- Guacamole
- Instant Pot Refried Beans
Tools used to create these tamales:
- 6-quart Instant Pot
- Stand Mixer
- Corn Husks
- Masa
- Lard – they usually sell this brand at the grocery store.
- Steamer Basket
Are you ready to give these a try? Let me know how it goes.
If you love this recipe, please rate it five stars and help me share on facebook and to help other readers in our community!
Enjoy!!
Instant Pot Red Chile Pork Tamales
Equipment
Ingredients
- 8 ounce package corn husks
- 3 ½ cups masa harina (I used the fine version)
- 2 ¼ cups warm water
- 10 ounces lard (substitute vegetable shortening if you must)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock
- 3 ¼ cup Red Chile Pork
Instructions
- Place husks in a large bowl or pot, cover with hot water and let them soak for until pliable, about 30 minutes.
- Stir the masa (corn flour) and warm water together in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer until thoroughly mixed and it form a ball.
- Add the lard, baking powder, salt, and stock. Blend on medium speed for 5 minutes to thoroughly incorporate. The mixture should be the consistency of hummus.
- If you do not have enough moisture, your tamales will be dry and crumbly. Place a scoop of masa into a bowl of warm water. If it floats, you’re good to go. If it sinks, you need to add more liquid. Set your finished dough aside until ready to use.
- Remove the corn husks from the water and lightly dry them to remove excess moisture.
- Place a 1/4 cup of dough in the center of each corn husk. Spread the dough out into about a 4-inch square, about a 1/2-inch thick in the center of the husk.
- Place 2 Tablespoons of Instant Pot Red Chile Pork in the center of the masa.
- Fold the husk over, starting with the side closest to you. Roll into a tight log/tube and fold up the long end towards the center. Tie a thin strip of husk around the center to secure. Repeat the process until you have used up all of your husks and masa.
- Place 2 cups of water in the bottom of your Instant Pot, then insert a steamer basket.
- Add the wrapped tamales with the open ends facing up. ***Make sure the tamales are not sticking up too high over the edge of the Instant Pot liner or your pressure cooker will not be able to build pressure, it will keep the lid from sealing properly***
- Secure the lid, make sure the pressure knob is in the “Sealing” position, and set press the Manual button, High Pressure and use the = and – buttons to set the timer for 20 minutes.
- When the pot beeps, allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes then manually release any remaining steam. Very carefully remove the lid at an angle to keep the moisture from dropping down onto the tamales.
- Allow your tamales to rest for 20 to 30 minutes to set and begin to firm up.
Notes
- You want to keep your masa at least 1/2-inch away from the sides to make it easier to roll. I got better at it after a few tried, but didn’t take any new photos.
- Yes, this is a time consuming process. If you have little helper to form an assembly line, it will go much faster.
- I prepared my Red Chile Pork one day, and prepared the tamales the next.
- Rip a few husks into 1/2-inch strips and soak with the full-sized husks to use as your ties.
- Corn husks are all different sizes, just adapt your fillings to the smaller husks and you will be fine.
- You read correctly, I did say 2 cups of water. I ran out of water during the first batch, so I added more for the second and it didn’t dry up!
- Store leftover tamales in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave or place in a 350° F. oven until heated through.
How do I make the red chili pork? the rest sounds good.
Ooops, I guess I should have made that more obvious Gene. Here is the link: https://cookingwithcurls.com/2018/04/21/instant-pot-red-chile-pork/
GIRL – my hubs has been begging me to make some for years. I’m going to have to try this. Or better yet – you are going to have to come up here for a visit & we can make them together. 😉
Oh, that sounds like so much fun!! I would need to do it before my parents sell their house and move to AZ, the cold weather finally got to them. 😉
Hello can you please tell me how many tamales this recipe makes? Also what would the cooking time be in my instant pot if my tamales are frozen? Thank you very much
It makes 25 tamales, Alyssa. I believe the cooking time would be the same, it just takes longer to come up to pressure…but I have never tried it myself. 🙂
Hi a friend just shared your link. What size IP are you using? You started with 2C water but said you added more. About how much more and was this before or did you stop the cooking process midway and then add more water? Thanks.
Hi Melissa, I use a 6 quart IP. I used 1 cup in the first batch and the pot was dry when I opened it, so I used 2 cups in the second batch. I am guessing that there was still enough moisture in the pot itself which I why I did not receive a burn notice.
The photos are really beautiful, and helped me make tamales last night. Mine were a mess after rolling so I tried tying like yours, cute and they stayed together. 25 minutes was fine in the IP. I used leftover pasilla beef stew, just shredded the beef w/ a little sauce, very good. Thanks!
Wy wife and I just made both the red chili pork and the tamale tonight, waiting on the tamales now! We screwed up and got the pre-made masa tamale mix – hopefully still turns out good.
The red chili pork was AMAZING though. Stole a few too many extra bites of that during the rolling process!
I made this and the Red Chile Pork recipe… I followed the recipes exactly and they turned out Amazing!! I was so happy to finally make my own and fill it with more meat. Honestly they were amazing and even better then a lot of my friends moms family recipes… but Shhhhh don’t tell!!
Lol… thank you so much for sharing
Excellent Adventure! Thank you for your information on cooking time (20 minutes) is great considering that it can take 1 1/2 hours on a gas range. This holiday season I will be using my insta pot. By the way I have gone to using a shortening that is a 50/50 blend of lard and vegetable shortening.
I am so glad I came across your web site. I finished making your tamales.
So much easier in the instant pot and they were WONDERFUL
Thank you so much
I am anxious to browse your site
I just finished making them and they aren’t fully cooked. How much longer should I put the IP for? Everything was so easy but they need more time to cook.
Just made some thanksgiving tamales with my instant pot. I utilized your method for cooking them (but a different recipe),and i must say : read ALL of the instructions first, including the tips, haha. My tamales were sticking up too high, and it didn’t seal properly, so i had to start the cooking process over with my instant pot.
They eventually turned out great!
So delicious. I did use veg shortening and the flavor is still fabulous, I believe, because I used homemade chicken stock which turned out very flavorful. Great recipe, not too difficult, and will make again. Was a hit with the family.
I have made these twice for special occasions (because they’re definitely a bit of work!), and they’ve gotten universal rave reviews both times. They are super delicious and worth the work!! Thanks!
Is there an insert I need to use in the instant pot to set them on?
Yes Malissa, I linked to the stainless steel steamer basket in the post. It is one of the expandable kind by OXO with the black handle in the middle.