Tamal en Cazuela con Jalapeño (Soft Tamale Pie)

About This Recipe

Tamal en cazuela is the 'lazy tamale' of Cuban cooking — the same fresh-corn masa and seasoned pork filling used for wrapped tamales, but layered into a baking dish instead of individually folded into corn husks. It's a genuine, widely-made Cuban dish, especially popular for weeknight dinners when nobody has time to tie forty tamales. This version adds diced jalapeño to the pork filling for a green-chile kick that isn't traditional but fits comfortably within how Cuban home cooks adapt tamal recipes to what's on hand. Fresh corn masa (grated corn mixed with a little cornmeal and milk) makes up both the base and the top layer, with the seasoned pork and sofrito sandwiched in the middle. Unlike a dry pie crust, this masa stays moist and slightly custardy after baking, closer in texture to a savory corn pudding than a Western-style pot pie. It's baked uncovered until the top sets and turns lightly golden, then rested before cutting into squares — resting is essential, since the masa needs a few minutes to firm up enough to hold its shape when served.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 6 cupsfresh or frozen corn kernels(thawed if frozen)
• 0.5 cupyellow cornmeal
• 0.5 cupwhole milk
• 0.5 cupbutter(melted, divided)
• 1.5 tspfine sea salt(divided)
• 450 gground pork
• 1onion(finely diced)
• 1green bell pepper(finely diced)
• 2jalapeños(seeded and finely diced)
• 3 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 1 tspground cumin
• 1 tspdried oregano
• 0.5 cuptomato sauce
• 0.25 cupchopped cilantro

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the masa

   Pulse corn kernels in a food processor until coarsely ground but not fully smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in cornmeal, milk, half the melted butter and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

2. 2

   Cook the pork filling

   Heat remaining butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion, green pepper and jalapeños; cook until softened, about 6 minutes.

3. 3

   Brown the pork

   Add ground pork, garlic, cumin, oregano and remaining salt. Cook, breaking up the meat, until no longer pink, about 8 minutes.

4. 4

   Add tomato sauce

   Stir in tomato sauce and simmer 5 minutes until the mixture is thick, not soupy. Stir in cilantro and remove from heat.

5. 5

   Layer the casserole

   Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F). Spread half the corn masa in a buttered 9x13-inch baking dish. Spoon the pork filling evenly over it, then top with the remaining masa, smoothing the surface.

6. 6

   Bake

   Bake uncovered for 40-45 minutes until the top is set and lightly golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.

   The center will still look slightly moist when done — it firms up further as it rests, so don't over-bake chasing a fully dry top.

7. 7

   Rest and serve

   Let stand 10 minutes before cutting into squares. Serve warm.

Variations

• •

  Use ground beef or a beef-pork mix instead of all pork for a different but equally traditional filling.

• •

  Add pimento-stuffed olives and raisins to the filling for a picadillo-style sweet-savory twist.

• •

  Make individual portions by baking in ramekins, reducing bake time to about 25 minutes.

Storage

Refrigerate covered up to 4 days. Reheat individual portions in the microwave, or cover with foil and reheat in a 175°C oven for 15 minutes to keep the top from drying out.

Frequently Asked Questions