12/08/2008

"Hot" Tamales

Tamales: a delicious Panamanian dish mostly made of corn. Although renowned, you can't get these puppies in a restaurant, because they take over 2 hours to make. And, for the same reason, you can't buy them in the grocery store. So, where do you get Tamales??? Well, apparently, there is usually a scary-greasy guy that sells them home-made out of a bucket on the street corner. He usually doesn't have a license to sell them...So the transaction is strikingly similar to a drug deal. Ours went something like this...

Tom and I are looking around a bit lost, then start staring right a man sitting on a bucket. I whisper to Tom "Do you think that's the guy we are looking for?"

The man, looking straight back at us: "Tamales?"

Us: "Yes!"

The man, in a more hushed Spanish voice: "$1.25 for 2."

Us: "$1.25 for 2?!? No way, $1 for 2"

The man, staring in all seriousness "$1.25 for 2."

Us: "Alright, here's a $1.25 then. We'll take two."

We slip him the cash, he reaches into his bucket and pulls out a little baggy with 2 green steaming rolls inside.

We split.

This, is Tamales.



6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Maybe it's better in person.

Tom said...

Believe it or not, banana-leaf-wrapped corn mush *is* really really good!

Tiffany said...

Seriously, you should have some sort of a warning at the beginning of your post. No fair talking to a really hungry pregnant chick about greasy greasy steamy hot food.

Q&L said...

Does it taste like cream corn??

Tom said...

Sort of, but less sweet. More savory, salty. And it has a bit of a beef/chicken broth taste. Maybe if you blended corn to a paste, and added a package of ichiban spice and a little bacon fat, you'd come close. I'm sure Candice could describe it better!

Candice said...

No, I think that pretty much sums it up!