After learning how easy it is to make tamales (no seriously), we set our eyes on more flavor combinations!
And after some testing, this classic yet incredibly flavorful combination won out. Say hello to your go-to vegan tamale flavor: sweet potato black bean! Just 10 basic ingredients required. Let’s do this!
What are Tamales?
Tamales are believed to have originated in Mesoamerica (a region that includes parts of Mexico and Central America). They consist of a corn-based (masa) shell and flavorful filling (vegan, vegetarian, or meat-based) that’s wrapped in either a corn husk or a banana leaf and then steamed.
Our version is not traditional, but is inspired by the concept and flavors. You can find more authentic recipes here (vegan) and here (not vegan).
How to Make Vegan Tamales
Our inspired, plant-based version starts with baking your sweet potatoes until tender and sweet. This can be done whole or halved. For extra large potatoes, I like to halve them and bake cut-side down to save time. Learn more about how to roast sweet potatoes here!
In the meantime, you’ll make the masa dough and soak the corn husks.
Once the sweet potatoes are cool enough to touch, remove the peels and mash.
Next, black beans are simmered with chipotle peppers, cumin, and sea salt for a smoky filling with plenty of plant-based fiber and protein.
When all the components are ready, it’s time for assembly!
Face the wider edge of the husk toward you, then use the back of a spoon to spread some masa from the bottom 1/3 center of the husk to the right edge.
Next, add a spoonful each of mashed sweet potatoes and black beans, and fold the right edge of the corn husk over the filling, tucking it in (like a little blanket).
Continue rolling until the seams meet. Then fold the narrow edge of the corn husk up and over to keep the fold in place before setting upright in a dish (we prefer a loaf pan).
Repeat until you’ve got about 24 tamales ready to be cooked!
Tamales cook by steaming. So, simply place them upright in a steamer basket in a large pot or Dutch oven with a little water. Then cover and steam for about 1 hour or until the masa has set. That’s it!
We hope you LOVE these vegan tamales! They’re:
Savory-sweet
Easy to make
Customizable
Satisfying
Super comforting
& Delicious!
They would be delicious served on their own or topped with our Go-To Guacamole, Cultured Vegan Sour Cream (or dairy-free yogurt), and/or Easy Red Salsa. They’re also perfect for making ahead and freezing for easy snacks or meals.
For pairing ideas, try with our Green Cauliflower Rice, Mexican Quinoa Salad, or Grilled Corn Salad.
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Sweet Potato Black Bean Tamales
Ingredients
SWEET POTATOES
- 3-4 medium-large sweet potatoes
MASA
- 2 cups masa harina (not cornmeal // masa harina has been cooked and soaked in lime water, then ground into flour)
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 ¾ tsp baking powder
- 2 ½ Tbsp avocado oil (or sub dairy-free butter or organic dairy butter as tolerated)
- 2/3 – 3/4 cup vegetable broth or water (warm temperature is best)
BLACK BEANS
- 3-4 Tbsp water (or sub oil and reduce amount by half)
- 1/4 cup diced white or red onion
- 1 15-oz can black beans, slightly drained
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, chopped
- 1 ½ tsp adobo sauce (omit or reduce for less heat)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1-2 tsp coconut sugar (optional)
FOR PREPARING
- 1 package dried cornhusks, soaked in water 30 minutes
FOR SERVING optional
- Plain dairy-free yogurt or sour cream (we like plain Culina yogurt)
- Hot sauce
- Cilantro
- Lime juice
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C) and place whole sweet potatoes on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Poke sweet potatoes a few times with a fork to allow steam to escape. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender. NOTE: For quicker bake time, halve sweet potatoes, rub with a little oil, and bake cut-side down for 35-40 minutes or until tender (as pictured).
- In the meantime, add masa harina to a large mixing bowl and pour the water over. Stir to combine. It will likely appear a bit dry — that's okay. Let rest 15 minutes to hydrate.
- In the meantime, add dried corn husks to a large mixing bowl and cover with room temperature water. Set something on top to submerge them (such as a small skillet). Set aside and let soak (at least 15 minutes and up to 1 hour).
- In the meantime, heat a saucepan over medium heat. Once hot, add water (or oil) and onion. Sauté, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until tender and slightly browned.
- Add slightly drained black beans, chopped chipotle pepper, adobo sauce (omit or reduce for less heat), salt, cumin, and coconut sugar (optional).
- Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce heat to a simmer and cover. Cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more salt to taste, cumin for smokiness, coconut sugar to balance the flavors, or adobo sauce for heat. Turn off heat and uncover. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Remove baked sweet potatoes from oven and let cool to the touch. Then peel away the skin, transfer to a mixing bowl or shallow plate, and mash with a potato masher or fork until mostly smooth. Set aside.
- To the soaked masa mixture add salt, baking powder, and avocado oil and stir. Then add broth (warm or room temperature for best results) a little at a time until a thick paste is achieved. It shouldn't be liquidy or crumbly (see photo). Be sure to stir well so it's fully combined. Set aside.
- Remove corn husks from water and pat dry (when water remains on the husks, the masa can have a hard time adhering). Then take one husk in your non-dominant hand (or place on a flat, clean surface) with the wider/broader edge facing toward you (narrow end away from you).
- Add 2 – 2 ½ Tbsp masa, then use the back of a spoon to spread the mixture from the bottom 1/3 center of the husk to the right edge (see photo). Spread into a thin layer — somewhere between 1/8th-inch and 1/4-inch thick (not too thin or the fillings spill through, not too thick or the tamale takes longer to cook).
- Then add ~1 ½ Tbsp of the mashed sweet potatoes to the center of the masa and top with ~1 Tbsp of beans (see photo). Tuck the right side of the corn husk over the bean filling, right where the masa's left edge is. Then continue rolling until the seams meet. Then fold the narrow edge of corn husk over the seam and set in a loaf pan or dish that will keep your tamales upright. Continue until you have used all your masa mixture and filling (as original recipe is written, ~24 tamales).
- To a large pot or Dutch oven, add a steamer basket. Fill pot with water until it almost touches the base of the steamer basket. Then add the tamales, keeping them upright if possible (see photo).
- Turn heat to high, then, once boiling, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer to steam the tamales for about 1 hour. You’ll know they’re done when the masa appears cooked. If you aren’t sure, you can remove one tamale, let it cool for a few minutes (as they stiffen up the more they cool), unwrap, and test. If they’re cooked through, they’re ready to enjoy. If not, steam for 5-10 minutes more, or longer as needed.
- Once cooked, remove the lid and let steam escape for a few minutes. Then they're ready to enjoy! Top with desired garnishes. We loved hot sauce, cilantro, lime juice, and a little dairy-free yogurt (Culina plain is our favorite, though vegan sour cream would be delicious, too).
- Store cooled tamales covered in the refrigerator up to 4-5 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop until hot.
- To freeze, let tamales cool, then add to a parchment-lined baking sheet and arrange in a single layer. Freeze until firm, then transfer to a well-sealed container where they should keep for at least 1 month, oftentimes longer. To cook from frozen, let thaw, then heat either in the microwave or in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop until hot. Or microwave for 1 minute, remove husk, and then continue heating in the microwave or in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop until hot.
Video
Notes
*More flavor ideas: Vegan Barbacoa, Smoky Lentil Taco Meat, Vegan “Pulled Pork”.
*Masa mixture roughly adapted from Seasons of My Heart cookbook.
*You can see a more traditional way to make and fold tamales here from De mi rancho a tu Cocina.
Saroya Freund says
I made these today! Never made tamales before so I was super nervous. I didn’t change much, per se. I baked the sweet potatoes last night and put them in the fridge to hold overnight. I wrapped them in foil when they were warm, and they just fell apart. Perfect texture for mashing. I used only 1 chipotle pepper that I chopped up really fine, and skipped the adobo altogether. It made 18 total but they came out really good. I steamed in a big pot for an hour and 15 just to make sure, and they set wonderfully! I’m going to add this as a staple to my Sunday food prep cook-a-thon.
We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Saroya! Thanks so much for the lovely review. xo
Karla says
Wonderful recipe! I made this for my school coworkers along with classic pork tamales and they liked these best. Was asked for the recipe. Even my friend who grew up making tamales with her family for every holiday enjoyed the recipe- said delicious and liked that it was new, something she hadn’t had before. Thanks!
Karla says
Oh, and they took 35min in the instant pot with 10 min slow release.
Nice!
Yay! So glad you all enjoyed! Thanks so much for the review, Karla!
jenna says
Love this recipe! I was having so much trouble making tamales since a lot of recipes mention that so much of the masa is about ‘feel’ and many vegan recipes use a lot of fat to make up for the lard. Which is fine for a special occassion but I want to make tamales more often than that! Instead of the vegetable broth I use the liquid from making homemade beans that I use in the filling. This also works great in the instant pot!
Ooo, great idea! Love the instant pot hack! Thanks, Jenna!
Donna Reeves says
I’m planning tamale making tomorrow with a couple of friends. We plan to use blended corn to replace the oil and in another recipe we will use cooked pumpkin to replace the oil.
Let us know how it goes!
Candi says
Maybe? After reading reviews about how long they took to steam on the stove I was worried about spending a couple of hours watching a pot. Multiple other recipes online suggested the instant pot for 30-40 min. The corn husk package directions state that it should take 2 hours to steam them.
Candi Thorson says
These have great flavor, I halved the spice since I have kiddos eating them. Even in the instant pot they really need a full 2 hours to cook. I started with 40 min, then kept having to restart it to add more time. I gave up around 90 min and ate them mostly cooked.
Thank you for sharing your experience, Candi! We wonder if there was too much condensation from the Instant Pot, causing them to be soggy and not cook fully?
Candi Thorson says
Are these spicy? I’m making them for kids and want them to eat them without complaining.
Hi Candi, Yes, they are a little spicy, but not heavily spicy. You could leave out the chipotle pepper and just use the adobo sauce for smokiness and mild heat. Hope that helps!
Janie says
So delicious! I love tamales but it never crossed my mind that they were mixed with lard so I was so excited to try it myself. The taste was better than what I’ve bought from food trucks lately but the shape needs some practice on my end. I put both the sweet potato and beans (separately) through some pulses in the food processor because I prefer that texture. I unexpectedly had to refrigerate everything for a couple hours before assembling and I think that may have made things easier to assemble. Big thanks to the person who recommended parchment paper because i couldn’t find husks. I cooked them in the instant pot based on another recipe (40 min high pressure, 10 min natural release then manual release, use the steamer basket and fill up water to just below) and they turned out great.
Amazing! So happy to hear you enjoyed these. Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications, Janie!
Kelly says
I’ve made these tamales twice now and love the flavor of the sweet potato!! I’ve also added sweet corn kernels, and roasted poblano pepper strips/made a roasted poblano pepper and lime topping sauce. I’ve needed to steam for more like 1.5-2 hours to get the firm tamale and don’t forget to top up your steaming water!
We’re so glad you enjoy them! Thanks so much for sharing your experience and modifications, Kelly!
maren says
I just tried this out and I was really happy with the results! Its the perfect sweet and spicy flavor. I didn’t have chipotles in adobe sauce so instead I made a makeshift sauce out of tomato paste, white vinegar, chipotle powder and chipotle flakes, cayenne pepper, garlic powder and cumin. It worked out great I was really happy with the flavor in the end. I also used organic blue corn masa instead of yellow corn which was delicious. my masa was a little more watery than hers and I think I could’ve used a thicker layer in the tamales because the sweet potato was leaking through a bit. Overall it was not bad for my first try making tamales. An important thing to note if you make this is that I was only able to make 12 tamales from this recipe, and I see others had the same experience. she must have made hers very small and used smaller corn husks. I ran out of the masa and bean mixture first and had a decent amount of sweet potato left over. They were great with lime, cilantro, avocado and salsa plus a little side salad with radishes.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience, Maren! We’re so glad you enjoyed them. We do make our tamales on the smaller side.
Kaelyn says
Legitimately the best thing I’ve made all year. Perfect balance of flavours and such a fun process. Also loveee the textures. THANK YOU!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Kaelyn! Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Hayley says
Hi There! Excited to try this recipe. I’m going to be using fresh masa, so I’m curious how much to use in place of the dry, reconstituted masa. Thank you!
We haven’t used reconstituted masa, so we’re not certain. But we’d estimate about 4 cups? Let us know how it goes!
Hayley says
They came out great! 4 cups of fresh masa makes a great substitution. I loved the flavors too. Will definitely make again!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Hayley!
Laura says
Alright… This ended up a total hot mess that I was semi able to rescue 😖. I followed the recipe almost exactly, although I subbed olive oil for the avocado oil in the Masa, and cooked my sweet potatoes longer to really bring out the caramelization of the sugar. I assembled the night before, stored horizontally on a cookie sheet covered in plastic wrap in the fridge, and steamed the next evening.
I was skeptical of cramming them all in my dutch oven where they were so close to each other and the lid… But it seemed that’s what you did Dana so I went with it. Steamed for 2 hours and masa and filling was literally mush spilling out of the tamales, it’s like everything liquified! Furthermore my pot was burning bc the water had run out by that point and it was hard to check given how smashed in there they all were. The water wasn’t touching the tamales, my best guess was that since they were so close to the lid and each other, the condensed water from the lid was just drenching them???
Anyways I took them out, put them in my huge stock pot, minus a few that had liquified completely, and tried that for just under an hour, and thank heavens that seemed to do the trick and they are now more or less cooked, albeit a little softer than they should be.
I’m so bummed bc I put so much time into them and the flavors are good. I think if I maybe had just spread the Masa a little thicker (it was too thin on some of the corn husk ribs) and steamed them in my big stock pot from the beginning maybe it would’ve gone better… But idk??
Hi Laura! It sounds like your masa was too thin! And if you let them cool out of the pot they should firm up a bit!
Laura says
Thanks Dana. Do you mean too much liquid in the Masa mix or spread too thin on the husk?
I just had some for lunch and they tasted really good. I’m still kind of traumatized tho so we’ll see if I’m brave enough to try again someday 😆
haha, that’s good! I meant too much liquid in the masa! It should be semi-thick and spreadable, not runny at all.
Brenda says
I made this tonight for dinner and it was so GOOD!
Amazing! Thanks for sharing, Brenda!
Jenn allen says
This recipe is AMAZING!!! So easy!! I made my tamales slightly bigger I guess because I only made 15, not 24. But my first time ever making tamales. Soooooo happy with the results!! Will be making many more in the future!!
Aw, yay! We’re so glad they turned out well! Thanks so much for the lovely review, Jenn!
Allison Vogel says
This is my favorite go to website for tasty, can’t fail recipes. So I got the courage up to try tamales for the first time in my fifth decade on Earth. I followed the recipe exactly. My first concern was that my masa seemed thinner than the pictures. I thought about stopping sooner when adding liquid by opted for putting in at least the minimum amount of broth. My second concern was that my corn husks were much bigger than The ones I see here. I apparently used a lot more ingredients because I ended up with 16 tamales, not 27. And they still weren’t very big. I was apparently not rolling them correctly or filling them right because they weren’t evenly filled with masa wrapped all the way around. I cooked them almost 20 minutes longer. The flavor is really good, I just wouldn’t serve them to guests as they need some work. I’m going to try again but afterI watch several videos on how to roll! Thanks for all your fabulous recipes!!!
Hi Allison, thanks for sharing your experience! We’d suggest taking a look at the photos and video for more guidance. Hope that helps for next time!
Lu Riv says
Thanks so much for this recipe! My family and I loved it (even though they’re not vegan). I didn’t have any chipotle peppers/adobo sauce so I left it out, but it was still delicious!
Yay! We’re so glad everyone enjoyed it, Lu! Thanks so much for sharing!
Judee says
Inspired to teach myself tamale making, I followed this recipe precisely (I am usually prone to changing recipes).
The result is delicious! Highly recommended!
Made my own Adobe and adjusted heat down.
Yay! Thanks for giving it a try and for the lovely review, Judee! xo
Carol says
Is it possible to make these without oil? My husband is whole food plant based no oil. This recipe looks delicious. I have never been successful making tamales of any kind.
Hi Carol, we’ve tested reducing the oil by 40-50%, but not eliminating it. Let us know if you try it!
Meera says
Any idea if you can use “instant” masa? I have a brand called Maseca which I got from a Mexican grocery store and meant to make tortillas but never got around to it, so wondering if I can use this for the tamales instead!
That should work!
Meera Pamidi says
Thank you!
diana says
I was wondering the best way to freeze and reheat? Would i Steam them before freezing or freeze after they have steamed and cooled? Then would i freeze them in the husks or take them out of the husks?
thank you so much for all of your recipes Dana! haven’t been disappointed yet!
Aw, thanks Diana! We’d recommend steaming and then freezing in the husk. You can find additional freezing and reheating instructions in instruction #16. Hope that helps!
Yazmin Cabrera says
Hello! Yesterday I made the recipe and they were great. I substituted the avocado oil with butter and barbecue sauce with “achiote”. They are not very porous like those sold on the street but they taste much better! The seasoning was a mixture of cream and yogurt. Delicious! Next time I won’t be afraid to use the spice because the sweet potato or sweet potato flavor plus the dough balance very well.
I live in tlaxcala Mexico, whose name means place of tortillas and corn and I loved the turn you gave to tamales !. I recently bought your book and I´m starting to make the recipes. Regards
yazmin cabrera says
I forgot to say that I used a steamer for your cooking in the oven. It took 2 hours.
Aw, we’re so glad you enjoyed them, Yazmin! Thank you so much for sharing! xo
Jo says
Ok, let me preface by saying I have never made tamales before. I tried these yesterday for Father’s Day dinner. The flavor was delicious…I give it 5-stars!! My attempt ???🤔…I give it a 3.5-stars. I followed everything except 2 things: in the beans, instead of chipotle & Adobe sauce I used 3 heaping Tbsp of a smokey salsa that I love, and I used a touch of regular sugar instead of the coconut sugar. Everything went smoothly…even the rolling turned out pretty!!! (I was surprised!!) My problem came during steaming them. I didn’t have the proper steaming set-up for the stove top, so I decide to use my instant pot & steamer basket (which was tall enough) with a regular glass lid on top & set It on “sauté” to heat the water in the bottom. After 30 minutes, I noticed there was a lot on condensation & I had to add more water to the bottom & set them for another 30 minutes. I then took one out for the 1 hr. test; the masa was still gooey & hadn’t set yet. So then I decided to just use the correct sealed lid and cook them under pressure for 30 mins. (By then I had already Googled “how to cook tamales in instant pot”.) So finally they were done, they still seemed soft so I laid them out to rest to see if they would firm up some more. They did somewhat, but still not to the texture I was expecting. And I had to be gentle….they didn’t release easily from the husk; but I managed, and made 4 beautiful plates w/ 3 tamales & toppings, Spanish rice, lettuce & tomato salad with a scoop of homemade guacamole & a few chips. (I rolled ~26, hubby went back for seconds & we had leftovers.)
Things that I may have done wrong:
-my steaming set-up allowed for too much condensation to drip on them and kept them soggy.
-maybe my masa was too runny because I added too much veggie stock???
-maybe I pressed the masa onto the husk too hard & that’s why it was hard to release in addition to it not setting well.
NOTE: Next time I will make the masa layer thicker, because the beans were visible on the ones that did hold together.
I hope this helps others by learning from my mistakes. Thanks again for another flavorful recipe. You rock!!😉
Thanks for sharing! I’d say they just needed steamed a little longer and I’ve never used an instant pot so that may have been the issue?
Vera Reynolds says
This looks wonderful, can’t wait to try them out tonight! Dana, is it possible to add weight measurements to ingredients? (I find that I always over-estimate what a “medium” potato is)
Ah, I understand that may be confusing! A medium sweet potato usually weighs ~130-150 g.
Rachel says
Hi Dana,
This looks like a delicious recipe :)
I’m just wondering why you chose not to situate your take on tamales within any kind of broader / historical / cultural context. You have of course built upon and adapted an existing food, but I don’t see you providing any references, or links as to how your source your inspiration (other than links to your own recipes).
Would you consider providing this information on your post, and being aware of these issues moving forward?
Thanks for your consideration.
That’s an excellent question. We go more into the history of tamales in an upcoming how to make tamales post, and also attributed the cookbook our original chicken tamale recipe was inspired from in this post. But didn’t go as in depth here. We’ll make those additions!
♥ Dana & James ♥ says
Yum! I’ve tried tons of vegan Tamales, and let’s just say they weren’t always pretty. On the bright side, This one was the best by far! Love the smoky flavor on the beans. Thanks a million!! xo
♥ Dana & James ♥
xo! Thanks for sharing!!
Jane says
My husband and I made these yesterday. Tamales are a favorite, however this was our first attempt at making our own. Your instructions are very clear and helpful. We love the flavor and taste. We were too anxious to eat them, so did not wait for them to cool before unwrapping. So ours were not so pretty, but they were delicious. We learned a lot and will definitely try again. We are seniors (84 &71). Vegans for years, and still learning and trying new recipes. Thank you for a great recipe.
Lovely, thanks for sharing, Jane! So kind!
Whitney says
It looks like you’re still using the term vegan. Are you vegan again? I thought you decided to switch to the term plant-based when you started consuming animals again (since veganism goes way beyond food)? Did I miss something?
Hi Whitney, my diet is in constant flux and I don’t really adhere to labels when it comes to my eating choices. But this recipe is vegan so we used that label. Hope you love it!
Kristin says
Hi! This looks so amazing and I can’t wait to try! I wanted to check in with you if you had a preferred masa harina you have used? I’ve found that it can vary pretty widely when making arepas, so I wasn’t sure if it’s the same when making tamales! Thank you!
I agree they do vary quite a lot! We’ve used Bob’s Red Mill before and it’s OK, but I believe there are better options out there. What options have you tried!
Kristin says
Yeah, I’ve tried making arepas with Bob’s as well and they turned out pretty bad. My husband is Colombian and his family only uses PAN for making arepas (white, yellow or whole wheat corn are all great), but I don’t know if it would be good for tamales too. I think I’ll go to the Portland Mercado just ask the lady in the grocery store what is best to use! Also, thank you for your wonderful recipes! I use them exclusively every single day!
xoxo! Yes, I use “Pan” brand for arepas. I wish there were more options, specifically organic!
Dana Chalamet says
Regarding the masa harina. There are many organic varieties on Amazon. Haven’t you tried any other that you liked better than Bob’s? Just want a really great choice for my first time making tamales. These sound AMAZING!
Hi Dana! I’ve only tried Bob’s and the brand “Gold Mine” on amazon. Both seemed comparable.
Dana Chalamet says
Gold Mine was actually the one I decided on from Amazon. Will give it a shot. Thanks so much!
Vanya says
Have you ever tried a grain free version of tamales? I tried making it with the Puerto Rican tamales called pasteles where the masa is made from cassava, squash, green bananas and plantains. It was really wet masa so I’m looking for a recipe with a dryer masa that’s grain free and oil free.
Hmm, I haven’t. I don’t love cassava flour when I’ve used it as I find it to be quite bitter. But I almost wonder if you could make an almond-flour based “masa” substitute mixed with other flours (maybe coconut and arrowroot or potato starch)? Let us know if you try anything out!
Cindy goelman says
Where do you find corn husks?
Most grocery stores have them, actually.
Bruna White says
I haven’t tried this recipe, but I do love tamales, been making them for years and will sure give this combination a try. I am however a cheater and use parchment paper instead of the husk… it yields the same results in my opinion, I totally recommend. :)
Oh wow! Had never thought of that. Thanks for sharing!
Laura says
I’ve been wanting to make vegan tamales forever!! But the thing that’s held me back is wanting to find a healthier alternative to lard in the masa, without compromising the texture.
I noticed you said it was possible to sub water for the vegetable oil, have you tested that yourself? If so, do you notice much of a difference in the cooked masa?
I have tested almost eliminating oil, but not entirely. I’ve cut it down by like 40-50%. Let us know if you go all the way!
Linda Szymoniak says
I really need to make these. One of my all-time favorite recipes is for sweet potato burritos. I’m sure I’d love these, too!
Yay! Let us know how it goes.
Beth says
Do you eat the corn husks or remove before eating?
Always remove before eating.
Paul says
Are there any particular corn husks you use? Where do you buy them? Thank you!
Not really, just any grocery store tends to have them! Otherwise, you can likely find them on Amazon.
Angela Mellor says
Hi , love all your recipes THANK YOU ! What if I can’t get the corn husks ? Is there a substitute? Thanks
You can use fresh corn husks, banana leaves, or another reader suggested parchment paper!
Jan says
I love tamales and never knew how to make them. And the vegan ones from the farmers market are so expensive!! I’m so excited to try this recipe. This recipe doesn’t intimidate me. Can I use the husks from store bought corn?
Yes! You can. And you can almost always find dried corn husks at most grocery stores.
Lisa says
Have you found that packaged corn husks are readily available at the grocery store? Or do you recommend buying online? Thanks!
The grocery store usually carries them!
Dana Chalamet says
I haven’t found the husks at any of our local grocery stores. Then I decided to search amazon and found there is no such thing as ORGANIC corn husks. Concerned than anything other than organic could be sprayed with glyphosate or any other chemical (?). So I guess I’ll have to opt for the parchment paper.