Skillet Tamale Pie plus Gluten-Free Options

I grew up in suburban America, with parents from rural Indiana. We grew eating meat, potato, and gravy dishes with canned vegetables and Velveeta cheese as staples. It was the era of TV dinners, tuna-potato chip casserole, Campbell’s tomato soup, Rice-A-Roni, and Jello-mold salads. If it weren’t for my grandmother I probably never would have learned to cook from scratch.

When you speak of comfort foods, they tend to be those things you grew up eating as a child. Meals that remind you of a time when you had no responsibilities beyond getting good grades and doing the dishes. Endless summer days that stretched on forever, and long winter nights, snuggled up under warm blankets, never worrying about paying a gas bill or the mortgage. A simple time, an easy time, a time of innocence.

Comfort foods follow the premise of simple, good ingredients being combined in uncomplicated ways. Plenty of food, filling our bellies and souls. Warm and often packed with carbohydrates, which stimulate our brains to release Seratonin, the body’s natural antidepressant. Comfort food truly do comfort us, leaving us with a sense that all is well with the world.

Another hallmark of comfort foods is the one-dish concept. I have always loved it when I can put everything into one pot and out comes a finished meal. Today’s recipe is one of those. You cook the first part of it in a skillet on top of the stove, then cover it with a cornmeal batter and bake that in the oven. You get a casserole and cornbread all in one! I love the simplicity of the tamale pie – an homage to southwestern, Mexican, and other Hispanic cuisines all rolled into one.

I don’t know where it got its name, but there is little similarity between a traditional tamale and Tamale Pie. The first is made with masa, usually filled with a meat mixture, wrapped in wet cornhusks and then steamed. The pie is also made with a meat mixture, but it is topped with a cornbread mix and baked. The tamale is common to nearly all Spanish-speaking cultures, while the pie is an American creation. The recipe below is very mild, created with a child’s palate in mind. If you want heat, you are going to have to add it. Some chopped chipotles, fresh jalapenos, or dried anchos would all be great.

If you cook this in a cast iron skillet you will get a really nice crust on the cornbread topping. Cast iron skillets come from a variety of sources these days, the traditional ones are from Lodge, and prices range from inexpensive all the way up to the top of the line from Le Creuset and Staub. Enamel-covered cast iron is the easiest to maintain and do not require any special treatment. My only caution is that you treat them as if they were non-stick and only use wooden spoons or nylon utensils with them. When you purchase cast iron cookware, because of the weight, make sure you buy pieces that have a “support” handle on the side opposite of the main handle. This way you can easily use two hands to lift it. You will thank me for this tip later!

Serve this with a tossed green salad and you have a complete meal. If you want to make this a vegetarian meal, add extra beans and corn to the filling along with some cooked Spanish rice and canned mild green chiles. If you have never tried Tamale Pie, now is your chance. It may well become one of your family’s new favorites.

Skillet Tamale Pie

2015-07-21 17:31:02

Yields 4

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Ingredients

1. Tamale Filling
2. 2 tbsp vegetable oil
3. 1 medium onion, minced
4. 2 tbsp chili powder
5. 2 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 2 tsp)
6. 1 lb lean ground beef or bulk pork sausage
7. 1 (15.5-oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
8. 1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
9. 1 can (14-1/2 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
10. 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
11. 2 tbsp minced fresh cilantro leaves
12. Salt and freshly ground black pepper
13. Cornbread Topping
14. 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
15. 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
16. 3 tbsp sugar
17. 3/4 tsp baking powder
18. 3/4 tsp baking soda
19. 3/4 tsp salt, divided
20. 3/4 cup buttermilk
21. 1 large egg
22. 3 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
23. 2 green onions, tough green tops discarded, remaining onion finely minced

Instructions

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 450°F.
2. For the tamale filling: Heat the oil in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion, chili powder, and 1/2-tsp salt and cook until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Stir in the ground beef, beans, corn, and tomatoes, and bring to a simmer, breaking up the hunks of meat with a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Stir the cheddar and cilantro into the filling and season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat.
4. For the cornbread topping: Meanwhile, whisk the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk and egg together. Stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture until blended. Stir in the melted butter until just combined. Fold in the green onions.
5. Dollop the cornbread batter over the filling and spread into an even layer. Place in the preheated oven and bake until the cornbread is cooked through in the center and golden brown on top, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve while hot.

Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated recipe

Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated recipe

The Heritage Cook ® https://theheritagecook.com/

Gluten-Free Cornbread Options for Skillet Tamale Pie

You can purchase Gluten Free Cornbread Mix from Bob’s Red Mill at many stores, including Whole Foods. If you prefer to make your own from scratch, here are three recipes for you to choose from:

Thank You!