I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things (the local
Giant had all their Goya foods on the scratch-and-dent table because the
Hispanic customers shop at the new Wal-mart instead). I do not want to make
tortillas or thicken chili. What can I do with it? I googled polenta recipes
to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed quite right.
Any ideas?

news wrote on Tue, 6 Jul 2010 13:09:00 -0400:

> I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things
> (the local Giant had all their Goya foods on the
> scratch-and-dent table because the Hispanic customers shop at the new
> Wal-mart instead). I do not want to make tortillas or thicken chili.
> What can I do with it? I googled polenta
> recipes to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed
> quite right. Any ideas?

It has uses as a thickener; it's corn flour after all. A tablespoonful
will do wonders for an over-liquid chili if added about half an hour
before the end of cooking but I must admit that my 8oz package seems to
last for ever.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

"news" > wrote in message
...
> I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things (the local
> Giant had all their Goya foods on the scratch-and-dent table because the
> Hispanic customers shop at the new Wal-mart instead). I do not want to
> make tortillas or thicken chili. What can I do with it? I googled polenta
> recipes to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed quite right.
> Any ideas?

Tamales.....

Dimitri

"Sqwertz" > wrote in message
...
> On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 13:09:00 -0400, news wrote:
>
>> I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things (the local
>> Giant had all their Goya foods on the scratch-and-dent table because the
>> Hispanic customers shop at the new Wal-mart instead). I do not want to
>> make
>> tortillas or thicken chili. What can I do with it? I googled polenta
>> recipes
>> to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed quite right.
>> Any ideas?
>
> Tamales, of course. Should have picked up some husks, too.
> Tamales are worth making at home.
>

Tamales it is! Though I'll have to save corn husks from corn on the cob,
because I sure didn't see any packaged ones at the store.

"news" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Sqwertz" > wrote in message
> ...
>> On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 13:09:00 -0400, news wrote:
>>
>>> I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things (the local
>>> Giant had all their Goya foods on the scratch-and-dent table because the
>>> Hispanic customers shop at the new Wal-mart instead). I do not want to
>>> make
>>> tortillas or thicken chili. What can I do with it? I googled polenta
>>> recipes
>>> to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed quite right.
>>> Any ideas?
>>
>> Tamales, of course. Should have picked up some husks, too.
>> Tamales are worth making at home.
>>
>
> Tamales it is! Though I'll have to save corn husks from corn on the cob,
> because I sure didn't see any packaged ones at the store.

Or maybe pupusas? They look good!

news wrote:

> Or maybe pupusas? They look good!

Pupusa is food for the gawds......wonderful stuff!!! The singular, best
food discovery I made while in El Salvador. Here's a good url for info:
http://www.whats4eats.com/breads/pupusas-recipe

--
Dave Bugg
"For it's 'guns this' and 'guns that', and 'chuck 'em out, the brutes',
But they're the 'Savior of our loved ones' when the thugs begin to
loot." - Rudyard Kipling

On 7/6/2010 1:19 PM, James Silverton wrote:
> news wrote on Tue, 6 Jul 2010 13:09:00 -0400:
>
>> I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things
>> (the local Giant had all their Goya foods on the
>> scratch-and-dent table because the Hispanic customers shop at the new
>> Wal-mart instead). I do not want to make tortillas or thicken chili.
>> What can I do with it? I googled polenta
>> recipes to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed
>> quite right. Any ideas?
>
> It has uses as a thickener; it's corn flour after all. A tablespoonful
> will do wonders for an over-liquid chili if added about half an hour
> before the end of cooking but I must admit that my 8oz package seems to
> last for ever.

FWIW, Carroll Shelby's chili mix includes a little packet of it. But
using at that rate a 5 pound bag would last several lifetimes.

news wrote:
>
> I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things (the local
> Giant had all their Goya foods on the scratch-and-dent table because the
> Hispanic customers shop at the new Wal-mart instead). I do not want to make
> tortillas or thicken chili. What can I do with it? I googled polenta recipes
> to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed quite right.
> Any ideas?

Make tamale pie: use the masa harina to make a crust in the bottom of a
greased baking dish. Top with shredded carne adovado or else
already-made chile, top with refried beans and a little cheese. Bake
until everything is hot.

On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 12:49:36 -0700, "Dave Bugg" >
wrote:

>news wrote:
>
>> Or maybe pupusas? They look good!
>
>Pupusa is food for the gawds......wonderful stuff!!! The singular, best
>food discovery I made while in El Salvador. Here's a good url for info:
>http://www.whats4eats.com/breads/pupusas-recipe

Dang, those look wonderful. Thanks for the link

koko
--

There is no love more sincere than the love of food
George Bernard Shaw

www.kokoscornerblog.com
updated 07/05/10
Watkins natural spices
www.apinchofspices.com

On 7/6/2010 8:55 PM, koko wrote:
> On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 12:49:36 -0700, "Dave >
> wrote:
>
>> Pupusa is food for the gawds......wonderful stuff!!! The singular, best
>> food discovery I made while in El Salvador. Here's a good url for info:
>> http://www.whats4eats.com/breads/pupusas-recipe
>>
> Dang, those look wonderful. Thanks for the link
>
> koko
>

There was a pupuseria near me when I lived in Texas and I sure miss
that. Maybe I should give them a try.

Becca

"Becca" > wrote in message
...
> On 7/6/2010 8:55 PM, koko wrote:
>> On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 12:49:36 -0700, "Dave >
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Pupusa is food for the gawds......wonderful stuff!!! The singular, best
>>> food discovery I made while in El Salvador. Here's a good url for info:
>>> http://www.whats4eats.com/breads/pupusas-recipe
>>>
>> Dang, those look wonderful. Thanks for the link
>>
>> koko
>>
>
> There was a pupuseria near me when I lived in Texas and I sure miss that.
> Maybe I should give them a try.
>
> Becca

Well, I made pupusas last night. I had half of a roasted pork loin from
Sunday, which I shredded and simmered in some tamale sauce with extra cumin
and garlic. I made the masa dough (which was kind of hard to handle), patted
it into circles with my hands, filled with the pork, and cooked on a griddle
coated with canola oil.
They weren't bad, husband liked them, but man, they were heavy like hockey
pucks! I had the rest for lunch today at work and they were actually better
reheated.
I will definitely try this again....after tamale pie lol.
Three cups of masa gone....:-)

news wrote:

> They weren't bad, husband liked them, but man, they were heavy like
> hockey pucks! I had the rest for lunch today at work and they were
> actually better reheated.
> I will definitely try this again....after tamale pie lol.
> Three cups of masa gone....:-)

Huh. They shouldn't have a heavy, dense texture to them.
--
Dave Bugg
"For it's 'guns this' and 'guns that', and 'chuck 'em out, the brutes',
But they're the 'Savior of our loved ones' when the thugs begin to
loot." - Rudyard Kipling

On 06/07/2010 18:09, news wrote:
> I do not want to make
> tortillas or thicken chili. What can I do with it? I googled polenta recipes
> to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed quite right.
> Any ideas?

You could make huaraches (they take less effort than tortillas) or in
the same vein, I don't know what they're called, but my family used to
do this: mix about 1 cup masa harina to 3/4 c water and let it sit for
about 10 minutes. Then form bits into about 1/2" thick, 2" wide and
4-5" long ovals with the tips of your fingers. My aunt always said to
make sure to leave deep finger imprints on them so they get crispy when
you deep fry them (or, if you add about a tablespoon of fat, you can
bake them; takes longer, but it's slightly healthier!). They're nice
with honey soaked into them.

You could try your hand at tamales, which aren't much effort if you're
only making a dozen or so (I use leftover roast made in the crock pot or
I make veggie ones with cheese and spinach or cheese and, when I can get
it here, fresh prickly pears). You can also make sweet ones. A
neighbour of mine when I was a kid used to do some every year at
Christmas with cinnamon, raisins, and almonds (or it might have been
almond paste).

Or, you can do empanadas - I use about half wholemeal flour and half
masa harina and make the dough just like you would make shortcrust
pastry. For fillings, well, anything you like: Beef, turkey, goat,
chicken... Along the same lines, puposas (stuffed flatbreads) are also
very nice.

If you don't care if what you're doing with it is 'authenic' Mexican,
then I've successfully used it half and half with regular corn meal to
make corn bread - it just gives it a slightly different taste, which I
enjoy - and I've also used it in with flour to make pizza dough and
dumplings for soup/stew.

Don't know if any of that will help, but it's what I could think of off
the top of my head.

-Jen

On 08/07/2010 10:17, Jen P. wrote:
> chicken... Along the same lines, puposas (stuffed flatbreads) are also

*pupusas. Sorry. I'm blaming the cold medicine.

-Jen

On Tue, 6 Jul 2010 13:09:00 -0400, "news" > wrote:

>I've been gifted with a 5-lb bag of masa, among other things (the local
>Giant had all their Goya foods on the scratch-and-dent table because the
>Hispanic customers shop at the new Wal-mart instead). I do not want to make
>tortillas or thicken chili. What can I do with it? I googled polenta recipes
>to see if I could use it that way, but none seemed quite right.
>Any ideas?
>

Zucchini pancakes. Substitute half the flour with masa. When you
flip them top with shredded cheddar cheese. Serve with butter and/or
sour cream.

Lou