Hot Pheasant Tamalas

Written by Jeff Davis

Prep Time: 30 min - Cook Time: 2 hours

It seems every year I get a little overzealous with my pepper planting. I end up with a ton of hot peppers in the garden, way more than I could ever use. I’ve been struggling to come up with ways to use them all. I’ve been adding peppers to breakfast eggs each morning, but that only uses so many of them. I’ve made crushed dried peppers by dehydrating them, then adding them to a coffee grinder. I’ve recently started making my own hot sauce, I’ve made Jalapeno hot sauce, serrano hot sauce, Cayenne hot sauce, Habanero hot sauce and kind of a pepper medley that just a bunch of different peppers fermented together. I have so much hot sauce, I’ve been adding it to pretty much everything. I just can’t use it fast enough. Here is one of the recipes I made to help me deal with my pepper surplus. Hot Pheasant Tamales!!

If you’re going to work with hot peppers, you might want to invest in some disposable gloves. Once the peppers oils get on your fingers, it’s going to burn wherever you accidently touch. If you end up cooking your hot sauce down to thicken it up, make sure you do it outside!! Your whole house with be coughing and complaining if you heat this hot pepper sauce up indoors.

These hot tamales are time consuming to make, but it makes a lot and it’s worth the effort.

Ingredients

Homemade Hot Sauce

1 lbs Hot Peppers – like Jalapeno, Serrano, Cayenne or Habanero

6 clove(s) Garlic

1/2 tbsp Kosher Salt

1/2 cup(s) Distilled Water

1/2 cup(s) White Vinegar

Tamalas

Package of Corn Husk

1 lbs Ground Pheasant Meat

1 cup(s) White Rice

3 Jalapeno Peppers

2 Cayenne Peppers

1 Yellow Onion

4 Garlic Cloves

1 tsp Paprika

1 tbsp Ground Cumin

1 can(s) Green Chilis - 4 oz

1/2 cup(s) Pheasant Stock

2 cup(s) Water

1 tbsp Olive Oil

Red Pepper Flakes

Kosher Salt

Ground Black Pepper

Butchers Twine

Masa Dough

3 cup(s) Masa

2 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Ground Cumin

1 tsp Kosher Salt

2 1/2 cup(s) Pheasant Stock

1 cup(s) Lard - Manteca

Instructions

Homemade Hot Sauce

Step #1 If you harvested your own peppers, wash them and weight them on scale.

Step #2 Add peppers, salt, garlic cloves, water and vinegar to food processer.

Step #3 Pulse until the peppers are broken up into small piece, but not smooth.

Step #4 Transfer to a mason jar and cover with cheesecloth.

Step #5 Let set on the counter at room temperature for several days, up to a week, to start fermentation.

Step #6 After one week, add back to blender or food processor and run on high until smooth.

Step #7 Pour contents through strainer to remove pulp.

Step #8 If your sauce is too loose, add it to a sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Mix a little xanthan gum, about ¼ to ½ tsp with a 1/2 tablespoon of water, then add to simmering hot sauce.

Step #9 Transfer to bottles.

Tamalas

Step #1 Start by placing corn husk in a bowl of water and soaking at least 30 minutes.

Step #2 Dice Onions and Peppers, Mince Garlic

Step #3 Add 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil to large skillet and sprinkle in some red pepper flakes.

Step #4 Allow the oil to warm, then add ground pheasant. Add season with Salt, Pepper, Cumin and Paprika.

Step #5 Allow to brown for a few minutes, then add diced onions and peppers. When onions turn translucent, add minced garlic and cook for another minute.

Step #6 Pour in ½ cup of Pheasant stock. Allow to simmer, stirring occasionally. When stock is reduced, turn off heat. Add can of Green Chilies. Season with addition salt and pepper if needed.

Step #7 In another saucepan add two cups of water and one cup of rice. Sprinkle in one teaspoon of salt. Bring to a simmer, the reduce and cover. Cook twenty minutes.

Step #8 When rice is down, combine with meat filling in skillet.

Masa Dough

Step #1 Add 1 cup of lard to large bowl and sprinkle in a little pheasant broth.

Step #2 Using an electric mixer on low setting start to beat the lard, gradually increasing the speed until it become fluffy.

Step #3 Added Masa, baking powder, salt and cumin to another large bowl and combine.

Step #4 Dump fluffy lard into Masa mixture.

Step #5 Combine slowly with electric mixer.

Step #6 Increase the spend, slowly add in pheasant stock. Dough should have a fluffy, creamy texture. Cover with damp cloth to keep from drying out.

Step #7 Take steamer pot a line the bottom with wet corn husk.

Step #8 Take wet corn husk and lay on counter, with inside of hush facing up. Added in a large spoonful of dough mixture to the center top portion of the hush. Wet your hands to prevent dough from sticking then press down on the dought with fingers and palm spreading and flatten then dough until you have a uniform thin layer. Leave room at the bottom of the husk to allow for rolling.

Step #9 Add one spoonful of meat and rice filling to the center.

Step #10 Fold the corn husk in half long ways.

Step #11 Take the overlapping part and fold it back in on itself.

Step #12 The hush should form a slender cone.

Step #13 Now take of the bottom of the corn husk and fold it towards the top.

Step #14 Take about 4 to 5 inches of butchers twine and tie off to prevent tamala from unfolding.

Step #15 Continue until all tamalas are done. Adding each one to the steamer.

Step #16 Fill steamer pot with just enough water to prevent the tamales from touching it. Stack tamales in steam with filling facing up.

Step #17 When full, cover with more corn husk.

Step #18 Bring streamer to boil then reduce to simmer.
Cook for 1 ½ hours to 2 hours.

Step #19 When done, remove from corn husk and drizzle with your homemade hot sauce.

Recipe Card

Hot Pheasant Tamalas

Written by Jeff Davis Visit : Visit authors website

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Prep Time: 30 min - Cook Time: 2 hours