Known as Tamal de Elote en Cazuela in Mexico, I make this casserole quite often. It’s a really tasty dish to serve as part of a Mexican meal or with BBQ ribs, chicken or as a vegetarian main course with some Mexican beans and a salad. The salsa can be used for other things too!
Makes 4 Servings
1 (4 oz.) tin whole green chilies
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
3 cups fresh corn kernels or thawed frozen corn
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 tsp. sugar
½ to 1 tsp. salt
2 oz. each aged Cheddar & Monterey Jack cheese, grated
Tomato Salsa, recipe below or an excellent bought brand
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter a 1 quart baking dish; set aside. Rinse the chilies and cut into wide strips. Combine the corn, cornmeal, butter, sugar and salt in a food processor and process until corn is fine. Layer half the mixture in the buttered baking dish. Top evenly with the chili strips. Cover with the cheeses; top with the remaining corn mixture. Cover the dish with foil; bake 1 hour.
Serve with the Salsa.
Tomato Salsa
2 ripe tomatoes, diced
2 to 3 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice, or more to taste
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded, deveined & minced, or to taste
1 clove garlic, smashed, with the back of a chef’s knife & pureed with a bit of salt
2 or 3 Tbsp. finely chopped red or white onion
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
Combine all ingredients & allow to stand for an hour or so to blend flavours.
