This is an adaptation of an African street food dish called Abala. In Senegal, the little packets are wrapped in banana leaves. At one time I had a banana tree in my yard, and could harvest my own banana leaves for wrappers. I used them to make a Burmese dish of steamed sweet rice – yum. But I digress. If you don’t have your own banana tree, there are plenty of banana leaves for sale at the DeKalb Farmers Market in both fresh and frozen form, and probably at any store that caters to a Caribbean or African customer base.
Or – make it simple – use corn husks as I suggest here. Those are pretty ubiquitous these days.
Just reading through the recipe will remind you that many cultures have leaf-wrapped dishes with a starch – like field peas or corn masa – surrounding a savory filling. And the relish here? If this were a recipe from Mexico, we’d be calling it pico de gallo.
Ingredients:
Corn husks (enough for 12 tamales) 2 cups field peas 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped 1 medium squash, diced Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1/4 cup canola oil 2 medium tomatoes, cored, seeded, and finely chopped 1 jalapeno, stemmed, seeded, and minced 1/2 small onion, very thinly sliced lengthwise
Preparation:
Prepare the corn husks by pulling out enough to make 12 packets about 6-inches wide and 6-inches long. Put the corn husks in a large bowl and cover with water. Leave to soak while you prepare the peas and filling.
In a medium saucepan, cook peas until tender. Drain and put peas into the jar of a blender along with 2 tablespoons of water. Puree, adding more water if needed to make a smooth but still thick paste. Move to a large bowl.
While peas are cooking, heat olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in squash and cook until squash releases its liquid, and the liquid cooks away. Stir into pea puree. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Drain corn husks and lay them out on a work surface. Place 2 tablespoons of filling in the middle of the long side of the corn husks. Fold the two sides over the filling, and then roll up from bottom to top, burrito-style. Transfer tamale, seam side down, to a steamer. Finish with remaining filling.
Bring an inch of water to a boil in the steamer and cook tamales until heated through, about 10 minutes.
While tamales are steaming, make a relish by combining tomatoes, jalapeno and onion. Serve over tamales.