Nacatamal
A large tamale of maize dough with pork, rice, potato, tomato and mint, wrapped in a banana leaf and cooked for hours. In Managua and all over the country it’s the weekend breakfast, with coffee.
Ingredients
- 1 kg nixtamalised maize flour (masa harina)
- 250 g lard
- Juice of 2 Seville oranges (or orange and lemon)
- 1 kg pork, in pieces
- 100 g soaked rice
- 2 potatoes, sliced
- 2 tomatoes, 1 onion and 1 pepper, sliced
- Mint, olives and prunes
- Banana leaves and kitchen string
- Annatto, garlic and salt
How to make it at home
- Marinate the pork with the annatto, garlic, bitter orange and salt for at least 2 hours.
- Mix the maize flour with the lard, salt, orange juice and lukewarm water until you have a soft, fluffy dough.
- Pass the banana leaves over a flame to soften them and put a portion of dough in the centre.
- On top, place a piece of pork, a little rice, potato, tomato, onion, pepper, mint, an olive and a prune.
- Fold the leaf into a parcel and tie it with string.
- Cook them covered in a large pot of boiling water for 3 or 4 hours.
The trick: They’re opened on the plate and eaten with bread and coffee.