Pyet DeSpain’s Blue Corn Strawberry Tamales with Coconut Horchata Sauce

On this week’s episode of “Your Mama’s Kitchen”, I sit down with the incredible Pyet DeSpain — an Indigenous chef, food justice advocate, and the inaugural winner of Gordon Ramsay’s Next Level Chef!

A member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Tribe, Pyet’s work as a chef is a celebration of both her Native American and Mexican heritage. As Pyet describes, her focus is on “giving a voice to Indigenous people, while also highlighting the fusion of my two cultures with fire and purpose”. Her debut cookbook, “Rooted In Fire: A Celebration of Native American and Mexican Cooking”, is set for release in November of this year! 🎉

Throughout this episode, we talk about how Pyet’s mother’s kitchen was a place of resilience and reinvention. Pyet reflects upon the deep cultural roots behind the meals she creates, and how they’ve inspired a love for art as well. She shares details of how she’s using her platform to preserve Native food traditions and to uplift her community one dish at a time and gifts us with her recipe for Blue Corn Strawberry Tamales with Coconut Horchata Sauce. YUMMMM!!!!

I so deeply enjoyed our conversation and I know our listeners will too — thanks for joining us, Pyet! 🧡

This episode is available NOW wherever you find your podcasts.

Listen, and as always, let us know whatcha think!

Ingredients

For the coconut horchata sauce

1/2 cup uncooked white rice

1/4 cup whole almonds

1/2 Ceylon cinnamon stick (or

1/4 cassia cinnamon stick)

Pinch of kosher salt

3 cups hot water

2 teaspoons cornstarch

11/2 cups coconut cream

3/4 cup maple sugar

For the masa dough

1 cup shortening (or unsalted butter)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

11/2 teaspoons baking powder

4 cups blue corn flour (I like to use

Pinole Blue’s Blue Corn Flour)

2 cups almond milk (or your choice

of milk), plus more as needed

3/4 cup strawberry preserves

1 cup maple syrup

For assembling the tamales

1 4-ounce bag of corn husks, soaked

INSTRUCTIONS

To make the coconut horchata sauce:

In a large, heatproof bowl, combine the rice, almonds, cinnamon stick, and salt. Pour the

hot water over the mixture, and let it sit at room temperature overnight.

The next day, pour the soaked rice mixture, including the water, into a blender. Add the

cornstarch, and blend on high until very smooth.

Strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a medium saucepan over medium

heat, add the coconut cream and maple sugar, and bring to a boil, whisking constantly.

Reduce the heat to low, and simmer, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about

1 minute. Remove from the heat and let cool.

Note: This sauce is so good, you can drizzle it on other desserts—the sky’s the limit!

To make the masa dough:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the shortening, salt,

cinnamon, and baking powder, and whip on high speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Reduce

the speed to medium, and add the blue corn flour, alternating with the almond milk.

Add the strawberry preserves and maple syrup, and beat until well mixed. Depending on

the capacity of your mixer, you may need to do this in two batches.

Increase the mixer speed to medium-high, and whip until the masa has the consistency

of a soft yet workable dough, about 3 minutes. If the dough is too firm, add more almond

milk, 1/4 cup at a time, until the correct consistency is attained.

To test the tamale dough, drop approximately 1/2 teaspoon dough into a cup of cold

water. If the masa floats, it is ready to shape into tamales. If it sinks, continue whipping it

for another minute. Repeat this test until the sample masa dough floats.

Note: I prefer to make my masa from scratch rather than using the store-bought

Masa preparada because many brands use lard, and I prefer to use vegetable shortening or

butter. The flavor profile of the lard can add to the overall flavor of this dish, which is not

ideal for a sweet tamale.

To assemble and cook the tamales:

Lay one corn husk flat, rough side down and the tip pointing away from you. If it’s a small

husk, place two together, overlapping them a bit.

Add about 1/3 cup of the masa preparada in the center of the bottom part of the husk.

Using moistened fingers or the back of a spoon, spread and smooth the dough to about

1/3-inch thickness.

Fold the two long sides of the husk toward the center, and fold the pointed tip of the

husk down over this seam. If you like tying the tamales, tear off strips of soaked corn

husk, twist them into small ropes (or use kitchen twine), and place a single corn husk tie

around the middle of the tamale to hold the bottom flap in place.

In a large pot or steamer over medium heat, add enough water to almost reach the

bottom of the steamer. Place the tamales inside, making sure they don’t touch the water.

Stand them upright, or stack them with one layer facing in one direction and the next at a

90° angle, leaving space for steam to circulate around each one. Cover the pot, and bring

the water to a steady simmer.

Keep a separate pot or kettle of boiling water on the stove, and top off the steamer with

additional water as needed. Cook for about 1 hour, and check for doneness by peeling

back the husk of one tamale. If it comes off smoothly and the masa is firm, the tamale is

done. If not, rewrap it and place it back in the steamer. Depending on the size and quantity

of the tamales, the cooking can take up to 90 minutes.

Remove the tamales from the husks, and serve warm.

Notes: Soak the corn husks in hot water for at least 30 minutes before making the tamales.

Weigh them down with a pan or a heavy plate to keep them submerged, then rinse to

remove any dust or silks, and stack them in a large mixing bowl covered with a clean, damp

kitchen towel.

There are many ways to wrap tamales, including a single tie or a double tie. The easiest

and fastest way to wrap a tamale is to fold it on three sides and place it in the steamer,

open end up, without tying.

There are many ways to steam tamales. The classic tamale steamer looks like a large pot

with a rack in the bottom. You can use any large pot with a steamer insert or create your

own version by placing a cake rack on inverted small ramekins in the bottom of a heavy

pot with a lid. Fill the pot with water almost up to the level of the rack, but not touching the

tamales, and steam.

Recipes posted publicly must include permissions copy: Excerpted from pg. 133 --Rooted in Fire by Pyet Despain reprinted with permission from HarperOne, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Copyright 2025.

ENJOY!

Michele’s Kitchen Notes
I may need Pyet to hold my hand with this one but I’m going to try it. LOVE a sweet treat. Can’t wait.