Tamales are a Latin American favorite, a delicious filling surrounded by corn meal dough, and steamed until cooked. Most tamales that we have the occasion to eat here in the US are wrapped in corn husks, the method typical of central and Northern Mexico. In the more tropical areas of Mexico and Central America, you’ll commonly find tamales wrapped in banana leaves or plantain leaves, which have their own unique and subtle flavor.

If you’ve never made tamales before, it’s a pretty long and involved process, which is why the making of them is so often a social event. Several dozens are made at a time, with the help of many hands. Tamales freeze well, so it makes sense to make more than you can eat at the time. The following process for making these wonderful banana leaf tamales was taught to me over several days by my good friend Arturo, who calls them “nacatamales”. I have since made them several times for our family with great results. This recipe is for a vegetarian filling, but you could also use a pulled pork or shredded chicken filling. The recipe makes about one dozen tamales; you can easily scale up the recipe. As Arturo says, !Delicioso!

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